ERIC Number: EJ991244
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2012-Dec-5
Pages: 15
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1473-0111
EISSN: N/A
What Do They Know? A Comparison of Pre-Service Teachers' and Inservice Teachers' Decimal Mathematical Content Knowledge
Muir, Tracey; Livy, Sharyn
International Journal for Mathematics Teaching and Learning, Dec 2012
The main aim of this paper is to report on an investigation into primary pre-service and inservice teachers' content knowledge of decimals. The participants were asked to complete four decimal tasks including the ordering of decimals, operating with decimals and converting a fraction to a decimal. The results from both sets of participants are compared and incorrect answers are described and discussed. The findings indicated a reliance on formal procedures and that incorrect responses indicated a fundamental lack of understanding of place value and the presence of misconceptions that are commonly held by their student counterparts. The study contributes to the limited field of research that uses comparative studies to look specifically at pre-service and in-service teachers' knowledge of decimals. (Contains 2 figures, 7 tables, and 1 footnote.)
Descriptors: Number Concepts, Comparative Analysis, Misconceptions, Knowledge Base for Teaching, Preservice Teachers, Inservice Teacher Education, Arithmetic, Mathematics Teachers, Mathematics Instruction, Mathematics Education, Mathematics, Pedagogical Content Knowledge
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A