Exploring Characteristics of Horizon Content Knowledge of Prospective Secondary Mathematics Teachers

• In Event: Teaching and Pre-Service Teacher Learning in Mathematics

Abstract

This study investigates 43 prospective secondary teachers’ responses (PSTs) on scripting tasks of inverse function symbol to explore the characteristics of their horizon content knowledge (HCK). The findings demonstrated that most PSTs had a process-oriented understanding, nearly half of the PSTs understood inverse functions as an algebraic process, but three PSTs favored a process-oriented understanding in the pedagogical context and an object-oriented understanding in the mathematical context. This study also analyzed the characteristics on PSTs’ HCK: simply emphasize definition in case of understanding of process-oriented function, and diverse pedagogy in case of understanding of object-oriented function. By digging PSTs’ explanations on their pedagogy, more cases and suggestions were proposed.

Authors

• Xiaoying CHEN, China West Normal University

• Bomi Shin, Chonnam National University