Pre-service teachers’ understandings of learning to use digital technologies in secondary mathematics teaching

One of the biggest challenges facing pre-service mathematics teachers is that of learning how to make effective use of digital technologies in the classroom in order to enhance the learning of their students. For initial teacher educators the challenge is to enable the development of teachers who have the capability to respond flexibly to new technologies and who are able to evaluate and reflect on the impact of such technologies on learning. We report on data collected as part of a research project investigating ways in which pre-service mathematics teachers can develop more effective skills in using digital technologies to enhance teaching and learning in the classroom. We examine this evidence using Mishra and Koehler’s (2006) model of Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPCK). The emerging understandings of pre-service teachers’ learning are considered in the context of their learning experiences during their initial teacher training course and in terms of charting the learning journeys they undertake on the course. The project outcomes point towards ways forward in enabling more effective learning by pre-service teachers in the use of technologies for mathematics teachin