An investigation into pre-service post-primary mathematics teachers' knowledge of problem-solving

We discuss the mathematical problem-solving proficiency of pre-service post-primary mathematics teachers in an Irish University, where the participants were undertaking concurrent teacher education programmes. The conceptual framework of this study is based on the work of Chapman (2015) who outlines that problem-solving proficiency is a key component in the effective teaching of problem-solving. We describe the range of data collection exercises undertaken as part of this study, and report in detail on one whereby the participants undertook two problems following a ‘Think Aloud’ protocol in recorded interviews. The interviews were analysed using a general inductive approach and five main themes were identified in the participants’ approaches to problem-solving. We report here on the analysis of the interviews and the role of problem-solving proficiency in the teaching of problem-solving.