Pre-service Mathematics Teachers’ Understanding of Rate of Change Throughout a Model Development Sequence

• Published in: International journal of science and mathematics education 2023-08, Vol.21 (6), p.1769-1796
• Main Authors: Kertil, Mahmut, Erbas, Ayhan Kursat, Cetinkaya, Bulent
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Addition; Concept Formation; Context; Data analysis; Difficulty Level; Education; Knowledge Base for Teaching; Mathematical analysis; Mathematical Concepts; Mathematical Models; Mathematics; Mathematics Education; Mathematics Instruction; Mathematics Teachers; Middle School Mathematics; Middle schools; Multiplication; Population growth; Preservice Teachers; Science Education; Teachers
• ISSN: 1571-0068; 1573-1774
• DOI: 10.1007/s10763-022-10324-z

This study examined a cohort of middle school pre-service mathematics teachers’ understanding of the rate of change as they engaged in a model development sequence. By adopting a design-based research perspective, a model development sequence on the concept of rate of change has been designed and implemented as part of a mathematical modeling course for pre-service teachers. The data were collected from twenty senior year middle school pre-service mathematics teachers (PSTs) through questionnaires, modeling activities, reflection papers, and semi-structured interviews. The data analysis showed that PSTs have difficulties conceptualizing the rate of change and conceiving it as a multiplicative comparison of changes in two covarying quantities. As they frequently employed its percentage interpretation, PSTs experienced additional difficulty conceiving the conventional meaning of rate of change in a population growth context. PSTs generally used motion context as a reference while explaining the rate of change in different non-motion contexts. In general, PSTs developed their conception of the additive rate of change throughout the model development sequence. However, for some PSTs, difficulty in ratio-based reasoning on the rate of change in different non-motion contexts prevailed. We provided some arguments concerning the teaching and learning of rate of change.