Teachers’ ability to connect what they are teaching to other related topics is central in their teaching. Analyzing video presentations of elementary preservice teachers, this study examined characteristics of their competence in connecting concepts that they are teaching to other relevant mathematics ideas. Results showed that participants preferred to connect addition and subtraction to concepts previously learned, such as place value, regrouping, number composition, and counting strategies, while paying less attention to the concepts that students will learn later, such as the inverse relationship of addition and subtraction, and the associative and commutative properties. The implications of this study for future research and mathematics teacher preparation are discussed.

Session Type: Brief Research Report