Investigating the development of pre-service elementary teachers' mathematics self-efficacy beliefs and learning goals: A review of research and a mixed methods study

Teacher educators may need to pay attention to pre-service elementary teachers' motivation to learn mathematics in order to help them develop a deep level of understanding from their mathematics content courses for teachers (content courses) and to help them develop the disposition to learn mathematics throughout their careers. In this dissertation I examine mathematics self-efficacy and mathematics learning goals, two constructs of pre-service teachers' motivation. Since few studies have been conducted on pre-service teachers' mathematics self-efficacy and learning goals, Chapter 1 reviews the literature on the mathematics self-efficacy and learning goals of other populations. Using these studies, I develop and provide evidence for a model on how pre-service teachers' mathematics self-efficacy and learning goals could develop and influence learning. Then, in Chapter 2, I present results of a study I conducted examining one sample of pre-service elementary teachers' mathematics self-efficacy and learning goals. Survey results identify participants' (N = 61) self-efficacy beliefs and learning goals for learning mathematics. Results from interviews using narrative analysis indicate that participants (n = 22) believe past performance, vicarious experiences, verbal persuasions, career goals, and the nature of mathematics in their classes influenced the development of their mathematics self-efficacy and learning goals. Participants were grouped into two categories: productive and non-productive self-efficacy beliefs and learning goals. Results indicate one difference between the two groups is the self-reported effect of the content courses on participants' mathematics self-efficacy beliefs and learning goals. In particular, participants' talk about the effect on their self-efficacy and learning goals of their performance in the content courses, their awareness of their career goals in the content courses, and the fit between their beliefs about math and the math in the content courses. These results increase our knowledge of how mathematics self-efficacy beliefs and learning goals develop and have implications for how teacher educators design mathematics content courses.