Enhancing Preservice Teachers' Mathematical Creativity via STEM Project-Based Learning: A Mixed-Methods Study

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session Saturday 9:50 am Four Seasons Ballroom 2-3
  In Roundtable Session: Studies of Preservice Mathematics Teaching and Mathematics Teacher Education (Table 7)

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to investigate how mathematics-emphasized STEM PBL lessons develop pre-service teachers’ creative thinking skills in mathematics. A mixed-methods study was applied to understand the results from the quantitative part of the study through qualitative analysis. The results revealed that although pre-service teachers did not increase their fluency scores of mathematical creativity after receiving STEM PBL intervention, they increased their flexibility and originality scores of mathematical creativity. The Hedge’s g for the overall increase from pre- to post-test was 0.42. During interviews, pre-service teachers attributed this increase to the ten features of STEM PBL and this implies that mathematics can be used as a main goal rather than solely a tool in the STEM PBL context.

Authors

• Ali Bicer, Texas A&M University

• Aysenur Bicer, University of Wyoming

• Tugce Aldemir, Texas A&M University

• Micayla Gooden, Texas A&M University

• Miriam M. Sanders, University of Wyoming

• Yujin Lee, Kangwon National University

• Celal Perihan, Idaho State University

• Fay S. Quiroz, University of Wyoming