The study aimed to investigate the effects of Lesson Study on the self-efficacy beliefs of pre-service kindergarten teachers. A quasi-experimental design with two parallel groups was used. The sample consisted of 49 students divided into a control group (27) and an experimental group (22). The pre-service kindergarten teachers in the experimental group followed an adjusted Lesson Study design, while the control group followed the traditional way of pre-service teaching practice. Findings indicate that there was no significant difference in teacher self-efficacy total scores between the groups, but there was a significant difference in the self-reported competence to effectively teach mathematics lessons and ability to get and keep pupils motivated.

The aim of the study is to investigate the possibility for fourth grade students to use the adapted Fangcheng method as a tool for solving word problems. In the first part of the paper we give an overview of the Ancient Chinese Fangcheng method for solving systems of linear equations. The second part consists of the research methodology, results and discussion. We used the quasiexperimental one-group design with post-test only. The sample included 48 fourth grade students. The research had two phases, and at the end of each phase post-tests were conducted. In the first phase, all students participated in the intervention program, while the second phase included only those students who performed well on the first post-test. The study results indicate that students who show greater interest in mathematics successfully adopt procedures necessary for the performance of the Fangcheng method. The findings of the study cannot be applied to all students considering the fact that there are certain limitations, such as a small sample size and quasi-experimental design. Therefore, some further research should be performed with a larger sample of students. However, since there are not many empirical researches which explore the effects of applying the history of mathematics in math teaching, we believe that our study contributes to the field.

The aim of this study was to investigate how class teachers and math teachers in Serbia perceived the possibilities, effects, and challenges of teaching mathematics online during the COVID-19 pandemic. We prepared a questionnaire that was implemented at the end of 2019/2020. The sample comprised 239 teachers, 141 class teachers and 98 math teachers. Both quantitative and qualitative methods were used for data analysis. The results suggest that, although the experience of online teaching had a positive effect on the teachers’ self-reported competence in using ICT tools, even more attention should be given to strengthening teachers’ pedagogical skills referring to teaching mathematics in an online learning environment. In general, teachers were satisfied with the quality of instruction they demonstrated. However, they were not satisfied with the quality of student knowledge. In addition, they faced certain challenges in the implementation of online teaching and learning, such as objective grading and assessment, as well as monitoring student progress, maintaining communication with parents, and motivating and engaging students. The majority of teachers stated that teaching math online had more disadvantages than advantages. Teachers’ responses also indicated that they tended to use ICT tools in a more traditional way.

STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics) as a form of integration of different disciplines is recognized as a field that teaches twenty-first century skills since it incorporates many hands-on activities focused on solving problems, development of creativity, innovative and critical thinking, encouragement of social competences through cooperation and sharing results. Teacher education programs predict that preservice primary teachers acquire knowledge of separate scientific disciplines and develop pedagogical skills of subject specific didactics during their studies. On the other hand, integration of different subject contents takes up only a small part, if any, of the curriculum. The purpose of this study is to examine the self-reported teaching competences of final year preservice primary teachers for using an integrated approach in their future work. By using questionnaire technique, qualitative data was collected from 55 pre-service primary teachers. The results showed that although student teachers have a positive attitude towards an integrated approach, they do not possess optimal level of teaching competences to teach it. The results indicate that existing teacher education programs need to be improved and modernized in order to prepare the pre-service primary teachers of the twenty-first century.

After the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, higher education insti- tutions all around the world were forced to switch from face-to-face to online and hybrid model of teaching. The issue of the quality of such teaching arose at universities. Given that, even under normal conditions, learning mathematics represents a challenge for stu- dents, we wanted to examine the attitudes and experience of students regarding teaching mathematics in an online environment. The aim of the research was to determine how students of non-mathematical faculties evaluate the quality of mathematics teaching in an online environment at higher education institutions in the Republic of Serbia during the COVID-19 pandemic. The research sample included 224 undergraduate students of seven faculties/departments of three state and one private university. Regardless of the fact that neither teachers nor students were prepared for the organization of online mathematics classes at the time of the COVID-19 pandemic outburst, the obtained research results confirm the good quality of teaching. Students recognize the quality of the organization of online mathematics classes in terms of well-prepared teaching materials in digital forms, as well as of good communication and interaction with teachers. We believe that this re- search can be a significant starting point for some further studies that could examine the connection between attitudes of students about the quality of mathematics teaching and their mathematical achievements. The obtained results can also be used in the context of preparing and planning training of both teachers and students, for the application of new technologies in the teaching process.