PROSPECTIVE TEACHERS’ SENSE MAKING

• In Event: TEACHER EDUCATION & KNOWLEDGE: PSTS' DISCOURSE AND SENSEMAKING

Description

This study explored how prospective elementary teachers described past experiences engaging in the Standard for Mathematical Practice, “make sense of problems and persevere in solving them.” Through grounded theory we found that responses varied between whether they described the problem solving process as one that relied on non-routine thinking, or as a process of following prescriptive steps. A third of the students demonstrated an understanding of solving problems as a sense making process, and many cited that this occurred in “geometry” and “word problems”. Findings suggest that teachers’ past experiences may have afforded few opportunities to engage in this practice.

Authors

• Carla Gerberry, Xavier University

• Lindsay Keazer, Michigan State University