The Investigation of Prospective Elementary Mathematics Teachers’ Problem Posing Self-Efficacy Beliefs

Abstract

Problem-solving and posing are skills at the center of mathematics education and mathematical thinking. However, little is still known about the affective aspects of problem-posing. This study aimed to determine the level of prospective elementary mathematics teachers’ problem-posing self-efficacy beliefs and to compare their beliefs according to the variables of gender, grade, and academic achievement levels. This study was carried out by survey method. Descriptive and causal-comparative survey research design was used in this study. The study group consisted of 130 prospective teachers studying at the Elementary Mathematics Education department in a state university, located in the Eastern Anatolia Region of Turkey. Problem-Posing Self-Efficacy Beliefs Scale was used as a data collection tool. In data analysis, descriptive statistics, the independent samples t-test, and one-way analysis of variance were used. Findings of the study indicated that levels of the prospective teachers’ PP self-efficacy beliefs were high. It was found in the present study that the problem-posing self-efficacy beliefs of the prospective teachers did not differ significantly with regard to gender. Furthermore, a statistically significant difference was found between the prospective teachers’ problem-posing self-efficacy beliefs in terms of their grade and academic achievement. In the light of the research results, suggestions were presented.