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Engaging pre-service middle-school teacher-education students in mathematical problem posing: development of an active learning framework

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Abstract

Although official curriculum documents make cursory mention of the need for problem posing in school mathematics, problem posing rarely becomes part of the implemented or assessed curriculum. This paper provides examples of how problem posing can be made an integral part of mathematics teacher education programs. It is argued that such programs are a good place to start the process of redesigning mathematics curricula so that school mathematics will pay more than lip service to problem posing. Data are presented and analyzed showing that teacher education students can recognize the need for problem posing both in their own programs and in school mathematics curricula. Examples of problems posed by teacher education students are presented and discussed. An active learning framework for interpreting the role of problem posing in mathematics classrooms is presented.

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Acknowledgment

The author gratefully acknowledges the willing participation of the students involved in this study.

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Correspondence to Nerida F. Ellerton.

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Ellerton, N.F. Engaging pre-service middle-school teacher-education students in mathematical problem posing: development of an active learning framework. Educ Stud Math 83, 87–101 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10649-012-9449-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10649-012-9449-z

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