Many elementary education programs have only one mathematics methods course designed for preservice teachers (PTs). Such courses typically cover a range of content and present a challenge for mathematics teacher educators (MTEs) who strive to prepare their PTs to teach mathematics in equitable and humane ways. Due to the "stand-alone"…

This dissertation was an exploratory investigation of four institutions STEM endorsement programs. The investigation was done in three separate qualitative studies that explored each institution's staff and faculty views on developing and implementing their STEM endorsement programs, the views of faculty who developed and taught a STEM methods…

Purpose: To review past research on teaching methods courses with preservice physical education teachers and preservice elementary classroom teachers. Method: This study was guided by the "2017 National Standards for Initial Physical Education Teacher Education." A thorough literature search was conducted using online databases, and a…

The role of engineering in science and mathematics education continues to emerge as a contributing factor to improving STEM education. Efforts across different countries include the integration of engineering in K-12 curriculum, after school programs, and inservice teacher professional development. Only recently have science teacher educators…

The shift to student engagement in scientific and engineering practices to learn science provides opportunities for science learning and language learning to occur in tandem. These opportunities also pose new challenges for elementary pre-service teachers (PSTs) since literacy methods courses have been presented separately from science methods…

This study sought to better understand how past science learning experiences affected preservice elementary teachers, both in terms of their own self-efficacy and their perceptions of science teaching and learning at the beginning of their science methods course. Following an explanatory sequential mixed methods design, this study first involved…

In 2014 NCTM advocated for productive struggle by expressing the need for teachers to allow their students the time necessary to grapple with their mathematical "uncertainties." We posit pre-service teachers need opportunities to productively struggle when learning and applying their mathematical understanding in order to understand how…

As part of their initial teacher education, most aspiring middle and high school science teachers take one or more semesters of coursework in the methods of teaching science. Surprisingly little is known about the curriculum of secondary science methods courses, however. This exploratory study aimed to better understand the goals and content of…

In this paper, we share our collaboration across the disciplines of mathematics and mathematics education to develop and implement a mathematical modeling task for prospective secondary mathematics teachers. Through this collaboration, we identified three key components of mathematical modeling: the "what," "how," and…

Pre-service teacher training is research intensive in Finland. Additionally, teaching as a profession is highly valued among young people. However, quantitative methods courses are challenging for teacher students from many reasons. Particularly, this is due to previous negative experiences and emotions (among other things). Thus, novel approaches…

Recently scholars have advocated for using teachers' practice as a site for teacher learning. The recent proliferation of online, digital spaces, including simulated classrooms, has paved the way for novel approaches within practice-based teacher education. Yet, limited research has investigated the extent to which and how the use of online,…

Given the myriad mandates and policies related to math and language arts education, U.S. public elementary teachers must "care about" teaching science for it to actually happen. Consequently, this study sought to explore the impacts of assignments in a science methods course supporting teacher candidates (TCs) in "caring about"…

Facilitating productive mathematical discussions is considered a core practice of mathematics education. The complexity of this teaching practice presents the need for pedagogical tools to provide structure for preservice teachers (PST) developing their practice, yet little is known about "how" PSTs use these tools. This multiple case…

Perceptions and attitudes of math teachers have an impact on students. Research has shown teachers with negative self-efficacy can build fear, anxiety, and even negatively affect students' math achievement. This research study addresses teacher candidate perceptions and attitudes (value, self-confidence, motivation, and enjoyment) toward…

Using narrative inquiry, I share the beginning stories of the instructional visions of secondary mathematics teachers throughout their undergraduate studies of pedagogy and content-specific methods and evidenced in undergraduate coursework and student teaching experience. Guided by Munter's (2014) Visions of High-Quality Mathematics Instruction…