Prospective Mathematics Teachers’ Perceptions of Collaborative Problem-posing as a Means to Promote Students’ Creativity and Character

초록

This study aimed to examine how prospective mathematics teachers (PMTs) perceive collaborative problemposing (CPP) as a method to cultivate students’ creativity and character in mathematics education. This is to propose the introduction of CPP at the stage of preparatory math teacher education as one of the ways to reinforce the creativity and character education capacity of PMT), and to attempt to be an opportunity to actively utilize CPP in math teaching-learning in the school field for the education of students’ creativity and character. To achieve this objective, I designed PMTs taking the ‘Educational Theories for Teaching Mathematics’ course, required in the second year of university, to experience CPP tasks. Data were collected through questionnaires or interviews over three years on how PMTs recognized the CPP tasks as a tool to cultivate students’ creativity and character in secondary schools. The results of the study are as follows. First, PMTs recognized regardless of their CPP experience that CPP might have a positive impact on improving students’ ability to devise various ideas and that it positively influences students’ attitudes toward building interpersonal relationships, including teamwork, respect, and consideration. Second, the experience of PMTs participating in the CPP made them more positively aware that CPP is effective in improving students’ ability to elaborate on ideas. Third, the PMTs’ experience of participating in CPP led to a more positive perception of the impact of CPP on the students’ abilities and attitudes, namely, the students’ ability to elaborate on ideas and their inner attitudes toward individuals, including honesty, fairness, and responsibility, and the attitude of students regarding logically presenting their opinions and making rational decisions. Finally, if there are downsides to the offline environment, an online environment may be more beneficial.

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