Middle school mathematics teachers' habits of algebraic mind and their reflections on courses

In this resarch, it's aimed to determine the secondary school math teachers' algebraic habits of mind and its reflection to the lessons by investigating 7th grade students' habits. Participants were 2 math teachers who work in state schools in Kemalpaşa, İzmir and their 8 students. In this research, teachers and students were choosen by considering three criterions which were determined by the researcher. From this t staspect, the method of this research is criterion sampling method from purposeful sampling methods. This criterions; (i) Choosing teachers who educate their students from 5th grade to 7th grade, (ii) choosing students whose grade point averages are middle or high the previous year, (iii) choosing students are seventh grade level. In this research, qualitative research method was used in collecting, analyzing and interpreting the data. The data of interviews done with teachers and students, were gathered with clinical interviews. 4 open ended problem which includes the subcomponents of algebraic habits of mind were asked to the teachers and students. The data which were acquired during the research process, were analyized in the basis of the questions and each question was investigated according to the components of algebraic habits of mind. The data were investigated with descriptive analysis method. As a result of the research, while solving algebra problems teachers can use the features of the algebraic habits of mind in a competent position and in general these habits are reflected in the students. Also,it is observed that the teachers and their students transformed the problems of shape patterns into number patterns. In this context, it appears that the algebraic habits of mind have defined rules with different strategies from the teachers of the students related to be subordinate component of describing a rule. Keywords: Algebraic habits of mind, algebraic thinking, math teachers