Investigation of mathematics related multiple representation skills of prospective primary school teachers

This study aims to examine the errors and deficiencies observed in prospective classroom teachers' multiple representation skills related to mathematics. The research was planned as a case study within qualitative research methods. The study group consists of 163 prospective classroom teachers studying at a university in the Central Anatolia Region who volunteered to participate in the study at four grade levels. Data were collected using a data collection tool consisting of a total of 13 questions under five main questions developed by drawing on the literature. The responses provided in the qualitative scope of the research were carefully examined, and a coding manual was developed by drawing on the literature. When multiple representation skills were examined, the categories were classified as positive and negative. In the negative classification, it was observed that the errors and deficiencies in representations were due to carelessness, reading comprehension, and lack of subject knowledge. In the positive classification, it was determined that an additional representation type was used in addition to the representation type requested in the question, even though it was not required; this made the solution easier and also made the solution more understandable and clear. When the answers were examined, it was observed that the response rate for verbal and visual representation questions was lower than for other types of representation, that verbal representation questions were avoided, and that the rate of incorrect answers was high for visual representation questions. It was thought that the errors and deficiencies observed in manipulative representation were related to real-life transfer and thus to real-life representation. It can be said that prospective classroom teachers are more competent in symbolic representation skills than in other representation skills. Keywords: Multiple representation, mathematics, prospective classroom teachers, representation skills.