Literacy and probabilistic thinking in pre-service and in service mathematics teachers

Abstract

The objective of this study is to characterize the literacy and probabilistic thinking skills that trainee and currently active mathematics teachers use when faced with real-world problems, in which uncertainty plays a role. A qualitative methodology was used, applying a case study design and the content analysis method. As a technique to obtain information, an open-question instrument was prepared based on two problem situations, which the participants were asked to complete. The 55 participants were selected through intentional or disposition sampling, 26 of whom were actively teaching, and 29 of whom were trainee teachers. Among the main results, it is worth noting that all teachers that participated in the study, both active and trainees, have not developed probabilistic skills that allow them to consider problems from the intuitive, classical and frequency perspectives, essentially resorting to the classical meaning of probability. In addition, there is little evidence of the development of conceptual and argumentative skills that allow comparing empirical and theoretical results. In conclusion, it was observed that both active and trainee teachers have not developed literacy skills and probabilistic thinking which would allow a way of teaching probability that goes beyond the purely algorithmic, promoting learning environments for the probabilistic literacy of students during their school years.