TY - JOUR T1 - Mathematical literacy, thinking, and teacher self-efficacy: A latent profile analysis of preservice teachers' competencies AU - Şata, Mehmet AU - Uras, Muhammed Celal AU - Soylu, Yasin PY - 2025 DA - October Y2 - 2025 DO - 10.21449/ijate.1554552 JF - International Journal of Assessment Tools in Education JO - Int. J. Assess. Tools Educ. PB - İzzet KARA WT - DergiPark SN - 2148-7456 SP - 891 EP - 904 VL - 12 IS - 4 LA - en AB - Professional competence is an important factor in determining the quality of teachers' education. A limited number of studies examine preservice teachers' professional competencies from a person-centered approach. The current study aims to identify latent profiles of preservice teachers' professional competencies. Data were collected from 545 preservice elementary mathematics teachers. The results showed significant relationships between self-efficacy in mathematical literacy, mathematical thinking, and teachers' self-efficacy in mathematical language. The findings revealed that preservice teachers were classified with three different profiles in professional competencies: low, medium, and high. The findings may help target preservice teachers in the risk group of professional competencies and develop programs that will enable them to develop these competencies. KW - Preservice teachers KW - Latent profile analysis KW - Professional competencies CR - Akkaya, R., Sezgin Memnun, D., & Katranci, Y. (2012, March 5-9). Teacher trainees' self-efficacy beliefs about mathematical literacy: Turkey case [Paper presentation]. 23rd International Conference Society for Information Technology and Teacher Education, Austin, Texas, United States. CR - Aktulun, Ö.U. (2018). Examination of the relationships between mathematics literacy self-efficacy perceptions of preschool teachers and geometric shape recognition and number skills of children with structural equation modelling. International Education Studies, 11(12), 63-77. https://doi.org/10.5539/ies.v11n12p63 CR - Ball, D.L., Thames, M. H., & Phelps, G. (2008). Content knowledge for teaching: What makes it special? Journal of Teacher Education, 59(5), 389 407. https://doi.org/10.1177/0022487108324554 CR - Barçın, N., & Yenmez, A.A. (2023). Geogebra software on the mathematical language developments and self-efficacy perceptions of students. International e-Journal of Educational Studies, 7(15), 682-704. https://doi.org/10.31458/iejes.1340349 CR - Berg, D.A.G., Ingram, N., Asil, M., Ward, J., & Smith, K.J. (2025). Self-efficacy in teaching mathematics and the use of effective pedagogical practices in New Zealand primary schools. Journal of Mathematics Teacher Education, 28, 129 149. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10857 024-09623-9 CR - Berlin, K.S., Williams, N.A., & Parra, G.R. (2014). An introduction to latent variable mixture modeling (part 2): Longitudinal latent class growth analysis and growth mixture models. Journal of Pediatric Psychology, 39(2), 188–203. https://doi.org/10.1093/jpepsy/jst085 CR - Blömeke, S., Kaiser, G., König, J., & Jentsch, A. (2020). Profiles of mathematics teachers’ competence and their relation to instructional quality. ZDM Mathematics Education, 52, 329-342. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11858-020-01128-y CR - Blömeke, S., Jentsch, A., Ross, N., Kaiser, G., & König, J. (2022). Opening up the black box: Teacher competence, instructional quality, and students’ learning progress. Learning and Instruction, 79, Article 101600. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.learninstruc.2022.101600 CR - Browne, M.W., & Cudeck, R. (1992). Alternative ways of assessing model fit. Sociological Methods & Research, 21(2), 230-258. https://doi.org/10.1177/0049124192021002005 CR - Buchholtz, N., Kaiser, G., & Schwarz, B. (2023). The evolution of research on mathematics teachers’ competencies, knowledge and skills. In A. Manizade, N. Buchholtz, & K. Beswick (Eds.), The evolution of research on teaching mathematics: International perspectives in the digital Era (pp. 55-89). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-31193-2_3 CR - Busnawir, B., La, M., Sudia, M., Idris, M., & Sadikin, S. (2021). Analysis of mathematical literacy ability in terms of self-efficacy high and low. International Journal of New Trends in Arts, Sports & Science Education, 10(5), 316-325. CR - Collins, L.M., & Lanza, S.T. (2010). Latent class and latent transition analysis: With applications in the social, behavioral, and health sciences. Wiley. https://doi.org/10.1002/9780470567333 CR - Cresswell, C., & Speelman, C.P. (2020). Does mathematics training lead to better logical thinking and reasoning? A cross-sectional assessment from students to professors. PLoS One, 15(7), e0236153. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0236153 CR - Dervenis, C., Fitsilis, P., & Iatrellis, O. (2022). A review of research on teacher competencies in higher education. Quality Assurance in Education, 30(2), 199 220. https://doi.org/10.1108/QAE-08-2021-0126 CR - Ekmekci, A., & Serrano, D.M. (2022). The impact of teacher quality on student motivation, achievement, and persistence in science and mathematics. Education Sciences, 12(10), 649. https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci12100649 CR - Ersoy, E., & Başer, N. (2013). Matematiksel düşünme ölçeğinin geliştirilmesi [The development of mathematical thinking scale]. Kastamonu Education Journal, 21(4), 1471-1486. https://dergipark.org.tr/en/pub/kefdergi/issue/22604/241557 CR - Gardesten, M. (2023). How co-teaching may contribute to inclusion in mathematics education: A systematic literature review. Education Sciences, 13(7), 677. https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci13070677 CR - Genç, M., & Erbas, A.K. (2019). Secondary mathematics teachers’ conceptions of mathematical literacy. International Journal of Education in Mathematics, Science and Technology, 7, 222-237. CR - Güneş, G., & Gökçek, T. (2013). Öğretmen adaylarının matematik okuryazarlık düzeylerinin belirlenmesi [Determination of preservice teachers’ mathematical literacy levels]. Dicle University Journal of Ziya Gökalp Education Faculty, 20, 70-79. CR - Hu, L.T., & Bentler, P.M. (1999). Cutoff criteria for fit indexes in covariance structure analysis: Conventional criteria versus new alternatives. Structural Equation Modeling: A Multidisciplinary Journal, 1, 1–55. https://doi.org/10.1080/10705519909540118 CR - Jentsch, A., & König, J. (2022). Teacher competence and professional development. In T. Nilsen, A. Stancel-Piątak, & J.-E. Gustafsson (Eds.), International handbook of comparative large-scale studies in education: Perspectives, methods and findings (pp. 1167-1183). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-88178-8_38 CR - Kabael, T., & Yayan, B. (2017). Effect of self-evaluation on preservice mathematics teachers' self-efficacy in the language of mathematics. Anadolu Journal of Educational Sciences International, 7(1), 1-34. CR - Karademir, Ç.A., & Deveci, Ö. (2019). Sınıf öğretmeni adaylarının matematik öğretiminde matematik dili kullanımları ve matematik okuryazarlığı öz yeterlik algıları [Primary pre-service teachers’ mathematical language usage in mathematics instruction and mathematical literacy self-efficacy perceptions]. İnönü University Journal of the Faculty of Education, 20(3), 695-708. https://doi.org/10.17679/inuefd.419755 CR - Kline, R.B. (2015). Principles and practice of structural equation modeling (4th ed.). The Guilford Press. CR - Kurniawati, N.D.L., & Mahmudi, A. (2019). Analysis of mathematical literacy skills and mathematics self-efficacy of junior high school students. Journal of Physics: Conference Series, 1320(1), Article 012053. https://doi.org/10.1088/1742-6596/1320/1/012053 CR - Mukuka, A., Balimuttajjo, S., & Mutarutinya, V. (2023). Teacher efforts towards the development of students’ mathematical reasoning skills. Heliyon, 9(4), Article e14789. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e14789 CR - Nilimaa, J. (2023). New examination approach for real-world creativity and problem-solving skills in mathematics. Trends in Higher Education, 2(3), 477 495. https://doi.org/10.3390/higheredu2030028 CR - OECD. (2023). PISA 2022 assessment and analytical framework. OECD Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1787/7ea9ee19-en CR - Olawale, B.E. (2024). Impact of preservice teacher education programme on mathematics student teachers' teaching practices during school experiences. Education Sciences, 14(7), Article 762. https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci14070762 CR - Ozgen, K. (2019). Problem-posing skills for mathematical literacy: The sample of teachers and preservice teachers. Eurasian Journal of Educational Research, 19(84), 179 212. https://doi.org/10.14689/ejer.2019.84.9 CR - Önal, H., Yorulmaz, A., Gökbulut, Y., & Çilingir Altıner, E. (2017). The relationship between preservice class teachers' self-efficacy in mathematical literacy and their attitudes towards mathematics. Journal of Education and Practice, 8, 170-179. CR - Özgen, K., & Bindak, R. (2008). Matematik okuryazarlığı öz-yeterlik ölçeğinin geliştirilmesi [The development of self-efficiacy scale for mathematics literacy]. Kastamonu Education Journal, 16(2), 517-528. CR - Pastor, D.A., Barron, K.E., Miller, B.J., & Davis, S.L. (2007). A latent profile analysis of college students' achievement goal orientation. Contemporary Educational Psychology, 32(1), 8–47. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cedpsych.2006.10.003 CR - Peter, E.E. (2012). Critical thinking: Essence for teaching mathematics and mathematics problem solving skills. African Journal of Mathematics and Computer Science Research, 5(3), 39-43. https://doi.org/10.5897/AJMCSR11.161 CR - Rojas, E., & Benakli, N. (2020). Mathematical literacy and critical thinking. In J. C. But (Ed.), Teaching college-level disciplinary literacy: Strategies and practices in STEM and professional studies (pp. 197-226). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-39804-0_8 CR - Saatçioğlu, F.M. (2023). Örtük profil analizi ile öğrencilerin matematik tutum profillerinin belirlenmesi üzerine bir araştırma [A study on determining students' mathematical attitude profiles by latent profile analysis]. Gazi University Gazi Faculty of Education Journal, 43(3), 1623-1643. https://doi.org/10.17152/gefad.1352037 CR - Schel, J., & Drechsel, B. (2025). A latent profile analysis for teacher education students’ learning: An overview of competencies in self-regulated learning. Frontiers in Psychology, 16, Article 1527438. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2025.1527438 CR - Schwarz, B., & Kaiser, G. (2019). The professional development of mathematics teachers. In G. Kaiser & N. Presmeg (Eds.), Compendium for early career researchers in mathematics education (pp. 325-343). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-15636-7_15 CR - Shiel, G., & Cartwright, F. (2015). Analyzing Data from a National Assessment of Educational Achievement (Vol. 4). World Bank Publications. CR - Spurk, D., Hirschi, A., Wang, M., Valero, D., & Kauffeld, S. (2020). Latent profile analysis: A review and “how to” guide of its application within vocational behavior research. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 120, Article 103445. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jvb.2020.103445 CR - Steele, D.F. (2001). Using sociocultural theory to teach mathematics: A Vygotskian perspective. School Science and Mathematics, 101(8), 404 416. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1949-8594.2001.tb17876.x CR - Şahal, M., Özdemir, A., & Karaşan, S. (2021). An examination of the relationship between secondary school students’ abstract thinking skills, self-efficacy perceptions and attitudes towards mathematics. Participatory Educational Research, 8(2), 391 406. https://doi.org/10.17275/per.21.45.8.2 CR - Şata, M. (2020). Nicel araştırma yaklaşımları [Quantitative research approaches] In E. Oğuz (Ed.), Eğitimde Araştırma Yöntemleri (pp. 77-98). Eğiten Kitap. CR - Thompson, D.R., & Chappell, M.F. (2007). Communication and representation as elements in mathematical literacy. Reading & Writing Quarterly, 23(2), 179 196. https://doi.org/10.1080/10573560601158495 CR - Topbaş Tat, E. (2018). Prospective mathematics teachers' perceived self-efficacy in mathematical literacy. Elementary Education Online, 17(2), 489 499. https://doi.org/10.17051/ilkonline.2018.418887 CR - Uras, M.C., Şata, M., & Soylu, Y. (2024). Investigation of preservice teachers' statistical literacy levels. International Journal of Educational Studies and Policy, 5(2), 174 185. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.14016307 CR - Uras, M.C., & Soylu, Y. (2024). Investigation of elementary school mathematics teachers' problem-solving skills without variables and problem-solving strategies. Technology, Innovation and Special Education Research, 4(2), 168-191. CR - Uras, M.C., Kaya, S., Kaya, A., & Yildirim, M. (2025). Unveiling risk profiles: A latent profile analysis of 21st‐century skills, resistance to change, and cognitive flexibility. Brain and Behavior, 15(1), e70167. https://doi.org/10.1002/brb3.70167 CR - Vilppu, H., Laakkonen, E., Laine, A., Lähteenmäki, M., Metsäpelto, R.L., Mikkilä-Erdmann, M., & Warinowski, A. (2024). Learning strategies, self-efficacy beliefs and academic achievement of first-year preservice teachers: A person-centred approach. European Journal of Psychology of Education, 39, 1161–1186. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10212-023-00729-x CR - Wu, W.-R., & Yang, K.-L. (2022). The relationships between computational and mathematical thinking: A review study on tasks. Cogent Education, 9(1), Article 2098929. https://doi.org/10.1080/2331186X.2022.2098929 CR - Yang, X., Kaiser, G., König, J., & Blömeke, S. (2020). Relationship between preservice mathematics teachers' knowledge, beliefs and instructional practices in China. ZDM, 52(2), 281-294. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11858-020-01145-x CR - Yavuz, G., Gunhan, B.C., Ersoy, E., & Narli, S. (2013). Self-efficacy beliefs of prospective primary mathematics teachers about mathematical literacy. Journal of College Teaching & Learning, 10(4), 279-288. https://doi.org/10.19030/tlc.v10i4.8124 CR - Yildiz, A., Baltaci, S., & Kartal, B. (2020). Examining the relationship between preservice mathematics teachers' mathematical thinking level and attitude towards mathematics courses. Acta Didactica Napocensia, 13(2), 256-270. https://doi.org/10.24193/adn.13.2.17 CR - Yildiz, E., & Arpaci, I. (2024). Understanding preservice mathematics teachers' intentions to use GeoGebra: The role of technological pedagogical content knowledge. Education and Information Technologies, 29(14), 18817-18838. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10639-024-12614-1 CR - Zehir, K., & Zehir, H. (2016). İlköğretim matematik öğretmen adaylarının matematik okuryazarlığı öz-yeterlik inanç düzeylerinin çeşitli değişkenler açısından incelenmesi [Investigation of elementary mathematics student teachers’ mathematics literacy self-efficacy beliefs according to some variables]. International Journal of Education, Science and Technology, 2(2), 104-117. CR - Zhang, H., & Tian, M. (2024). Unpacking the multi-dimensional nature of teacher competencies: A systematic review. Scandinavian Journal of Educational Research, 69(5), 1004–1025. https://doi.org/10.1080/00313831.2024.2369867 UR - https://doi.org/10.21449/ijate.1554552 L1 - https://dergipark.org.tr/en/download/article-file/4233966 ER -