Preservice mathematics teachers' probabilistic knowledge and their attitudes toward probability and teaching of probability

This study investigates preservice mathematics teachers' (PSMT) probabilistic knowledge and their attitudes toward probability and teaching probability. The target population was PSMTs in the third and fourth grades in Turkey. The participants were seniors and juniors who volunteered to participate. Firstly, preservice teachers completed attitudes toward probability and its teaching scale (APT), which consists of 27 items. The number of participants was 195 for APT. Then, they completed the probability concept inventory (PCI), which includes 12 probability questions regarding different meanings and different knowledge types of probability. In total, 95 PSMTs took PCI. After the analysis of the results of PCI and APT, 13 participants were interviewed via Zoom. The results showed that PSMTs have a low level of Advanced Content Knowledge (ACK) while they have adequate Common Content Knowledge (CCK) among three types of probabilistic knowledge. The examination of knowledge of three meanings of probability indicated that PSMTs' knowledge of frequentist meaning (FM) is weak. The results of APT showed that PSMTs have positive attitudes toward probability and its teaching. Uncertainty and lack of understanding of probabilistic concepts were observed as common reasons for negative attitudes toward probability and teaching of probability. Also, it was examined that there was no statistically significant relationship between probabilistic knowledge and attitudes.