Using Alternative Algorithms with Preservice Teachers
During their undergraduate program, preservice elementary teachers are expected not only to become generalists across a wide range of school subjects but also to develop pedagogical knowledge of the developmental and social needs of children. We have developed a twosemester freshman-level mathematics-content course that attempts to address multiple needs of preservice teachers. The goals of this course are to help preservice teachers (a) deepen their understanding of mathematical concepts; (b) restructure their attitudes toward, and beliefs about, the nature of mathematics and how it is learned; (c) investigate pedagogical issues; and (d) experience mathematics learning within a reformbased environment. These goals are interrelated and reflect the complexity of the nature of the knowledge and disposition, both mathematical and pedagogical, that preservice teachers are expected to develop.