The Future of Education
Pre-service Teachers’ Use of Number Line in Addition and Subtraction Tasks
Paal Espen Olvik Jom, Nord university, Faculty of Education and Arts, Mathematics (Norway)
Eirik Bergli, Nord University (Norway)
Abstract
In this study, we examine which solution strategies first-year pre-service teachers in the primary school teacher education program use when solving addition and subtraction tasks. The number line is one way of visualizing the operations of addition and subtraction, and it may contribute to a deeper conceptual understanding of these operations ([1]). We asked first-semester pre-service teachers to complete a test consisting of addition and subtraction tasks toward the end of their first semester in the teacher education program. The test was analyzed using a thematic qualitative analysis strategy ([2]). The theoretical framework applied in the study was based on the solution strategies for addition and subtraction with multi-digit numbers described by Hickendorff et al. (2019) ([3]). Our results indicate that most pre-service teachers in the primary school program used algorithm-based solution strategies when solving addition and subtraction tasks, while only a small proportion used the number line as a strategy ([4]). This suggests that teacher education should emphasize a broader range of representations—including the number line—when teaching addition and subtraction, as well as other representational forms relevant to these operations.
Keywords: Number line, Addition and Subtraction Tasks, Solution strategies, Pre-service teachers
REFERENCES
[1] Bramald, R. (2000). Introducing the empty number line, Education 3-13,
28:3, 5-12, https://doi.org/10.1080/03004270085200271
[2] Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2013). Successful qualitative research: A practical guide for beginners. Sage.
[3] Hickendorff, M., Torbeyns J. & Verschaffel L. (2019), Multi-digit Addition, Subtraction, Multiplication, and Division Strategies. In Fritz A., Haase V.G., Räsänen P. (Eds.) International Handbook of Mathematical Learning Difficulties. Switzerland: Springer. Page 543-560. Doi: 10.1007/978-3-319-97148-3_32
[4] Serin, M. K. (2021). Investigation of Pre-Service Primary School Teachers’ Pedagogical Content Knowledge through Transition between Representations. Croatian Journal of Education Vol.23; No.2/2021, pages: 569-604 https://doi.org/10.15516/cje.v23i2.3919
