Mathematical knowledge for preschool teachers

Preschoolers’ mathematical competencies form a crucial foundation for their future academic achievement and everyday functioning (Nguyen et al., 2016; Ritchie & Bates, 2013). High-quality mathematics education in early childhood plays a vital role in enabling children to reach their full potential. Central to this is the knowledge and expertise of preschool teachers or early childhood practitioners (ECPs) in fostering young children’s mathematical development. This study specifically examines ECPs’ mathematical content knowledge (MCK). Various frameworks have been developed to conceptualize the knowledge and competencies required by teachers and ECPs (e.g., Blömeke et al., 2015; Gasteiger & Benz, 2018). However, there remains ambiguity regarding what constitutes relevant MCK for ECPs. In many cases, ECPs’ MCK is assessed using standardized school mathematics tests. For instance, Torbeyns et al. (2020) employed a grade 6 standardized mathematics test. Yet, given that early childhood mathematics—and the notion of mathematical awareness emphasized in the Danish kindergarten context—differs significantly from school mathematics, such assessments are unlikely to capture the conceptual mathematical knowledge that is most pertinent for supporting kindergarten children’s mathematical development.
With this study we address the following research questions: 1) what is relevant mathematical knowledge for supporting kindergarten children’s (2–6-year-old) mathematical development? And 2) how can we measure this knowledge?
Departing from international research and in collaboration with ECPs to ensure alignment with the Danish kindergarten context, we have developed a measurement to assess relevant mathematical content knowledge for ECPs. Results from a first piloting shows promising results but also concerns about ECPs’ mathematical content knowledge. We will further discuss what is relevant knowledge of mathematics for supporting kindergarten children’s learning and development.
Acknowledgement
The project is funded by Novo Nordisk Foundation Grant no. NNF22OC0080662.
References
Blömeke, S., Gustafsson, J. E., & Shavelson, R. (2015). Beyond dichotomies: Competence viewed as a continuum. Zeitschrift für Psychologie, 223(1), 3–13.
Gasteiger, H., & Benz, C. (2018). Enhancing and analyzing kindergarten teachers’ professional knowledge for early mathematics education. The Journal of Mathematical Behavior, 51, 109–117.
Nguyen, T., Watts, T., Duncan, G., Clements, D., Sarama, J., Wolfe, C., & Spitler, M. (2016). Which preschool mathematics competencies are most predictive of fifth grade achievement? Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 36, 550–560. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecresq.2016.02.003
Ritchie, S., & Bates, T. (2013). Enduring links from childhood mathematics and reading achievement to adult socioeconomic status. Psychological Science, 24(7), 1301–1308. https://doi.org/10.1177/0956797612466268
Torbeyns, J., Verbruggen, S. & Depaepe, F. (2020). Pedagogical content knowledge in preservice preschool teachers and its association with opportunities to learn during teacher training. ZDM Mathematics Education 52, 269–280. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11858-019-01088-y