An Investigation of Primary School Teachers’ Experiences in Teaching Division

Year 2026, Volume: 11 Issue: 1, 119 - 141, 15.03.2026

Özlem Doğan Temur , Hülya Coşkun , Abdullah Yavuz Yeşil

https://doi.org/10.29250/sead.1844976

https://izlik.org/JA73TB89TY

Abstract

Primary school mathematics education places significant emphasis on the teaching of arithmetic operations. Among these, the instruction of division has a structure that requires careful and sensitive handling by classroom teachers. The aim of this study is to examine classroom teachers’ experiences regarding the teaching of division. The research was designed using a qualitative approach and employed a phenomenological research method. The study group consisted of 20 experienced classroom teachers working in the provinces of Afyonkarahisar and Kütahya. Criterion sampling and convenience sampling methods were used. Data were collected through a semi-structured interview form consisting of six questions developed by the researchers. Thematic analysis was employed in the data analysis process. The findings indicate that only a limited number of teachers used problem statements and real-life connections in the teaching of division. Although teachers considered the use of models necessary for teaching division, they experienced difficulties in establishing meaningful instructional connections through these models. Furthermore, analysis of teachers’ instructional processes and problem constructions related to remainders revealed a predominantly one-dimensional and non-relational structure.

Keywords

Primary school teacher , Mathematics education , Division

Ethical Statement

CONFLICT OF INTEREST STATEMENT The authors declare that there is no conflict of interest in this study. RESEARCH AND PUBLICATION ETHICS STATEMENT The authors declare that research and publication ethics are followed in this study. The necessary permission to conduct the study was obtained from Social and Human Sciences Research and Publication Ethics Committee of Kütahya Dumlupınar University (April 28, 2025-2025/04) AUTHOR LIABILITY STATEMENT The authors declare that they have done every step of this work themselves. GENERATIVE AI USE DECLARATION The authors declare that GenAI tools were not used in this study.

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