The story of Maia: I will try to survive!

Abstract

Two major concerns in mathematics teacher education research are the role of subject matter knowledge and the development of self-efficacy in teaching mathematics (SETM) in preservice teachers (PSTs). These two bodies of research are normally not brought together, but I do so by investigating PSTs’ SETM using an instrument developed with Skemp’s two ways of understanding mathematics as the point of departure, and by exploring the sources of SETM through longitudinally conducted semi-structured interviews over a period of nearly two years. A focus on how one PST, Maia, drew on different sources of SETM, contributing to a new understanding of the agency of those PSTs that are recognised as “weak” because “they don’t know any maths”.