Growing mathematics teachers: Pre-service primary teachers’ relationships with mathematics
Keywords:
pre-service teachers . affect . knowledge . growth mindset . longitudinalAbstract
At the beginning of their programme in 2015, 40% of the 83 primary pre-service teachers at the University of Otago did not meet the required standard for content knowledge, and therefore their programme was adjusted. During their three-year programme, the pre-service teachers’ mathematical content knowledge was examined, as well as other affective aspects of their relationships with mathematics, including beliefs and feelings about mathematics and teaching, and associated identities. Pre-service teachers’ perceptions of the usefulness of the interventions were sought. Their relationships with mathematics generally became more positive as they grew towards becoming teachers and as they adopted a growth perspective. The pre-service teachers found the interventions useful although their confidence remained somewhat conditional on their knowledge and the age of the children. Many of the pre-service teachers moved from thinking about their own relationships with mathematics to thinking about the relationship of the children.
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