Preservice Educators' Perceptions on Manipulatives: The Role of Mathematics Teaching Self-Efficacy

Abstract

In this study we examine how prospective teachers perceive the efficacy of manipulatives and if these perceptions relate to their future use of manipulatives and their mathematics self-efficacy.Survey responses from 97 preservice educators who completed a mathematics method course indicate three essential findings: (1) preservice teachers perceived manipulatives as highly effective for enhancing students' performance, conceptual knowledge, and affect and reported higher levels of the intended use of manipulatives in their future teaching; (2) both preservice teachers' mathematics content and teaching self-efficacies were significant negative predictors of the intended use of manipulatives; and (3) preservice educators' perceptions and the intended use of manipulatives is dependent upon their mathematics teaching self-efficacy.