Preservice Teachers’ Reflections on the Use of Visual Supports to Improve Mathematics Pedagogy

Abstract

This case study inspected mathematical learning opportunities that employed the results from the participating preservice teachers’ (n=75) original visual arts creation process. Data obtained during this study provided empirical evidence for the educational viability of employing original Mondrian-style rectangle sets as a context for generating authentic mathematics inquiry opportunities. The participating preservice teachers generally indicated that through the process of creating their Mondrian-style rectangle sets and exploring the mathematical patterns within their works, such as the presence of fractions and ratios, they were able to develop an improved understanding of the pedagogy for teaching these mathematics concepts. The findings from this study suggest that both mathematics teachers and mathematics teacher educators might better serve their students by including more visual supports when teaching mathematics concepts.

Keywords

• mathematics education
• teacher preparation
• ratios and fractions
• proportional reasoning
• visual supports for instruction