Knowledge Levels of Pre-Service Mathematics Teachers on the Basic Concepts of Algebra
Abstract
This study aimed to determine the knowledge levels of secondary school mathematics pre-service teachers about the basic concepts of learning algebra and to examine them according to various variables. The research was carried out with 151 pre-service teachers who attended a state university's Primary Education Mathematics Teaching program and were determined according to the convenience sampling method. The case study technique was used in the research. The data of the study were collected with nine open-ended questions prepared by the researcher. Both qualitative and quantitative analysis techniques were used in data analysis. The results show that the secondary school mathematics pre-service teachers have insufficient knowledge of the basic concepts of algebra and the relationships between the concepts. It is understood that pre-service teachers' algebra knowledge developed towards the upper classes with the effect of the courses they took in their undergraduate education but did not reach the high level. In addition, although the pre-service teachers' algebra knowledge levels did not differ according to gender, it was concluded that the mean algebra scores of girls were higher than boys.
Keywords
mathematics , pre-service teachers , algebra , knowledge level
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