Fifteenth International Conference on Interdisciplinary Social Sciences

Abstract

This is a research study with undergraduate students in a university preparation program for mathematics teachers. The case took place in a rural community in a South American country. The objectives of the study were to explore what were the cultural funds of knowledge (CFofK) of the students and to analyze how they apply their CFofK in the design of problem-based mathematics instruction for secondary school grade levels. The study is significant because literature in the field shows that children’s engagement and understanding are enhanced when school instruction targets their CFofK. The study participants were twelve students enrolled in a mathematics teaching methods course, and the researcher who was a participant-observer. Data included video-recorded observations, written mathematics problems, and follow-up interviews. Data analysis encompassed descriptive statistics, open and focused coding, and themes that emerge from data. The findings of the study show that university students had different points of entry and levels in a learning trajectory. In this trajectory, about half of the students were at the intermediate level where they incorporated, in different ways, their community CFofK to teach mathematics. A fourth of the students were at the initial level where they started to recognize the CFofK in their community. The remaining students were in the advanced level in which CFofK were creatively and successfully used in problem-based mathematics instruction. The study discusses implications for mathematics teacher preparation and future research regarding the role and teaching of educators not only in rural communities, but also in different cultural communities.