The purpose of the current study was to analyse the difficulties experienced in the development of mathematical competence among primary school students from the perspective of teachers. This study employed a qualitative research paradigm with the use of the case study methodology. In this research, the sample comprised 18 teachers teaching at the primary school level. Semi-structured interviews were used for collecting data, and an interview form designed by the researcher was implemented. For designing the interview form, expert opinion and piloting were utilized. In order to interpret data, descriptive analysis was applied. According to the findings, students face major difficulties in mathematical competence development in relation to the four sub-dimensions. Regarding problem solving, the most common issue reported by teachers is a lack of understanding the meaning of the problem after reading it. Cognitive developmental limits, problems with separating problem into smaller tasks, and determining the best strategy for finding its solution are the primary concerns for the sub-dimension of mathematical reasoning. For mathematical representation, the key issues include abstract-concrete conceptualisation, graph-reading, table-reading, and symbol interpretation, and when talking about mathematical communication, the main problems involve comprehension of mathematical terms, using them properly, and explaining. Based on the research results, it should be stated that such difficulties are not only related to student achievement but also to language, symbols, previous experiences, psychological, and contextual elements that should be taken into account in the assessment. As far as the practical implications are concerned, the research provides a practice-oriented problem map covering four dimensions of mathematical competence development in primary school mathematics education.
The purpose of the current study was to analyse the difficulties experienced in the development of mathematical competence among primary school students from the perspective of teachers. This study employed a qualitative research paradigm with the use of the case study methodology. In this research, the sample comprised 18 teachers teaching at the primary school level. Semi-structured interviews were used for collecting data, and an interview form designed by the researcher was implemented. For designing the interview form, expert opinion and piloting were utilized. In order to interpret data, descriptive analysis was applied. According to the findings, students face major difficulties in mathematical competence development in relation to the four sub-dimensions. Regarding problem solving, the most common issue reported by teachers is a lack of understanding the meaning of the problem after reading it. Cognitive developmental limits, problems with separating problem into smaller tasks, and determining the best strategy for finding its solution are the primary concerns for the sub-dimension of mathematical reasoning. For mathematical representation, the key issues include abstract-concrete conceptualisation, graph-reading, table-reading, and symbol interpretation, and when talking about mathematical communication, the main problems involve comprehension of mathematical terms, using them properly, and explaining. Based on the research results, it should be stated that such difficulties are not only related to student achievement but also to language, symbols, previous experiences, psychological, and contextual elements that should be taken into account in the assessment. As far as the practical implications are concerned, the research provides a practice-oriented problem map covering four dimensions of mathematical competence development in primary school mathematics education.
