Why am I in Primary School Mathematics Teacher Education Program? An analysis of Reasons and Expectations in the Context of Gender and Academic Achievement: Case of Kastamonu University

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to determine teacher candidates’ reasons for and their expectationsfrom the mathematics teacher education program and to reveal the situation in the context of gender andacademic success. Being descriptive in nature, the data was analyzed through the content analysis. 102 fourthgrade students attending Kastamonu University primary school mathematics teacher education programparticipated in the research. According to research findings, external factors such as family, university entranceexam score, teacher influence were found to be effective among the reasons for preference of prospectiveteachers. Similarly, both low and high achieving teacher candidates were mainly attributed their reasons’ forselecting mathematics teachers education programmes to the external factors. It has been seen that theexpectations of the prospective teachers concentrate on the themes of professional development, academicdevelopment and social development.. Male teacher candidates emphasized professional development whilefemale candidates highlighted academic improvement, and social improvement factors. Mathematics teachercandidates from different level of success more adverted the expectancy of gaining of mathematics teachingskill.