Understanding Changes in Teacher Dispositions Towards Mathematics Teaching Using an Epistemic Network Analysis

Oct 15, 2026

Study examines how a primary school teacher’s values, beliefs, and enjoyment toward mathematics teaching evolve during Mathematics Identity (MICubed) professional learning. Employing quantitative ethnography with epistemic network analysis, the research tracks changes across the learning period and considers impacts on mathematics teaching practices. Background literature addresses links between beliefs, pedagogical content knowledge, mathematical knowledge for teaching, and instructional approaches. The study is situated within two primary school communities in Victoria, Australia.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages8

Reading Time20 min

AccessFree to download

Background Literature

Teacher dispositions and mathematics teaching

Professional learning and knowledge frameworks

Problem-solving, emotions, and student outcomes

Epistemic network analysis approach

Understanding Changes in Teacher Dispositions Towards Mathematics Teaching Using an Epistemic Network Analysis Jake Laurie Monash University [jake.laurie@monash.edu](jake.laurie@monash.edu) This study seeks to understand the experiences of a teacher who has participated in professional learning that focuses on the values, beliefs, and enjoyment that primary school teachers experience about mathematics teaching. Using a quantitative ethnography methodology, an epistemic network analysis was applied to understand these changes experienced by a teacher over the professional learning period. Many Australian primary school teachers do not enjoy mathematics teaching (Russo et al., 2023) . This situation is likely to have negative consequences for learning and teaching mathematics in primary school. Professional learning for primary school mathematics teachers commonly focuses on developing teachers’ curriculum and pedagogical content knowledge (Beswick et al., 2016), but little attention is given to developing teachers’ positive attitudes and enjoyment for teaching mathematics (Lamb, 2010) . The focus of this study is to investigate and describe any impacts associated with participating in the Mathematics Identity (MICubed) professional learning activity which investigates the values, beliefs, and emotional dispositions that primary school teachers experience with mathematics teaching. The research reported in this paper is part of a broader PhD study involving teachers from two primary school communities in Victoria, Australia. For the purposes of this paper, results and findings are reported for one participating teacher. This case describes how one teacher’s self-perceptions change over time and the influence of this change on their mathematics teaching. Background Literature The MICubed professional learning was designed using evidence-based practices for teaching primary school mathematics, grounded in pedagogical content knowledge (PCK)(Shulman, 1987) and mathematical knowledge for teaching (MKT) (Ball et al., 2008) . Before examining the role of teacher dispositions towards mathematics in the implementation of effective teaching practices, it is useful to first examine this evidence base. Bobis et al. (2012) argue that effective mathematics teaching practices are a combination of curriculum content knowledge, beliefs about mathematics, and the social/cultural contexts from which these are being drawn. This builds upon the work of Sullivan et al. (2009), highlighting the importance of teacher pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) for being effective practitioners. In response to the foundational work of Shulman (1987), which took a cross curricular perspective to PCK, Ball et al. (2008) sought to further refine the concept of pedagogical content knowledge for mathematics teachers, arguing that the field of mathematics education requires a more specialised strand of PCK. They refer to this as mathematical knowledge for teaching (MKT) . This focus on the specifics of mathematical knowledge is an important foundation for this study. With Ball et al. (2008) recognising the distinct understandings and practices required for the effective teaching of mathematics, it is reasonable to wonder if a distinct set of emotional dispositions are also necessary for achieving this outcome in primary mathematics classrooms. Considering these discussions with an eye to school improvement through the lens of professional learning actions, key questions arise: What is more important, teacher knowledge, or confidence in their knowledge? Will a teacher with less specific content knowledge but lots of confidence and positivity towards the subject, be more effective in creating a learning pathway for student achievement? Lee (2005), through a survey questionnaire completed by 81 randomly selected teachers in Indiana, USA, produced correlations between teacher attitudes to the teaching of mathematics and student learning outcomes. T

FAQs

What does the study aim to understand about teacher attitudes toward mathematics teaching?

It investigates how a teacher’s values, beliefs, and emotional dispositions toward mathematics teaching change during MICubed professional learning.

What methodology is used to analyze changes over the professional learning period?

The study applies quantitative ethnography combined with epistemic network analysis to track these changes over time.

Why is problem-solving central to the professional learning discussed in the paper?

Problem-solving connects mathematical content knowledge with social and emotional functions like collaboration and engagement, and it is linked in the literature to both positive approaches and potential negativity in primary teachers.

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Taylor Morgan