- Title
- Investigating the relationship between mathematical knowledge for teaching and self-efficacy of pre-service mathematical literacy teachers
- Creator
- Van Zyl, Nicola Stephanie
- Creator
- Van Zyl, Marinda
- Subject
- Mathematics teachers -- South Africa Mathematics -- Study and teaching -- South Africa
- Date Issued
- 2016
- Date
- 2016
- Type
- Thesis
- Type
- Doctoral
- Type
- MEd
- Identifier
- http://hdl.handle.net/10948/10849
- Identifier
- vital:26829
- Description
- Although a good understanding of mathematical content knowledge is essential for effective mathematics teaching, this might not be enough. Mathematical knowledge for teaching (MKT) requires a kind of depth and detail special to teaching, and involves mathematical reasoning as well as thinking from a learners’ perspective. Educational outcomes are also influenced by teachers’ self-efficacy beliefs regarding their ability to teach effectively. This study was an investigation into the relationship between pre-service teachers’ mathematical knowledge for teaching (MKT) and their mathematical self-efficacy with regard to MKT. Participants in the study were 137 BEd (FET) students at Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, specializing in Mathematical Literacy as teaching subject. The quantitative data used for the study were gathered using a questionnaire on MKT for the topics number concepts and operations. This questionnaire was designed by Deborah Ball’s Michigan research team, to which I added a question on self-efficacy for every item. An analysis of the data gathered from the questionnaire reveals interesting and disturbing trends. The results suggest that, in more than 80% of the cases, respondents were either completely sure their answer was correct, or tended to think their answer was correct, indicating high levels of self-efficacy. Since only about 40% of answers were in reality correct, this indicates that participants believed their answer to be correct, although their interpretation of the mathematical knowledge for teaching involved was incorrect. Hence: they don’t know that they don’t know! The results of this study suggest that there is a need for educators of teachers to help improve prospective mathematical literacy teachers’ mathematical knowledge for teaching. Pre-service teachers should be taught to use cognitive skills that will raise the likelihood of improved learner understanding. For this, robust understanding of the fundamental mathematics involved is needed, as well as high levels of self-efficacy with regard to the teaching of mathematics.
- Format
- x, 157 leaves
- Format
- Publisher
- Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University
- Publisher
- Faculty of Education
- Language
- English
- Rights
- Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University
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