Improving Primary School Prospective Teachers' Understanding of the Mathematics Modeling Process

The development of mathematical thinking plays an important role on the solution of problems faced in daily life. Determining the relevant variables and necessary procedural steps in order to solve problems constitutes the essence of mathematical thinking. Mathematical modeling provides an opportunity for explaining thoughts in real life by making connections with knowledge and skills. Research concerning mathematics education indicates that there are several problems faced when trying to apply modeling to problem solving. This research has been done using the action research model in order to help primary school prospective teachers understand the process of mathematics modeling. Participants in the study consisted of 36 freshmen in total who were continuing their education in the department of primary school teaching of a state university during the 2011-2012 academic year. For selecting participants, the criteria sampling method, a purposeful sampling method, was used. The tools for data collection were comprehension and operational tests which related to mathematical modeling as well as weekly evaluation tests created within the framework of the action plans prepared by the researchers (variables test I-II, model formation test and model analysis). At the beginning of the research, it was observed that teacher candidates were not able to create modeling activities related to mathematics problems. As a result of the action plans, it was observed that as the success of a teacher candidate's ability to perceive a problem increased, their operational success also increased and they were able to create modeling activities for the given problems.