Examining Coherence in Preservice Mathematics Teachers’ Noticing of Students’ Thinking About Classification in Geometry

This study aims to examine the thematic coherence among preservice mathematics teachers’ noticing components when analysing students’ thinking about classification in geometry, as well as the actions they propose to respond to those students. The research was conducted within an instructional module on the teaching of geometry, embedded in a mathematics methods course of a master’s programme. The module was designed to foster preservice secondary mathematics teachers’ pedagogical content knowledge alongside their noticing skills. Considering the mathematics education literature about the process of classification in geometry and the components of noticing, an analytical framework was developed to identify the thematic coherence of preservice mathematics teachers’ noticing of students’ thinking from two fictitious classroom episodes. Data came from individual written responses of 12 preservice mathematics teachers to an instructional task. The results overall patterns reveal strong thematic coherence in attending and interpreting, with responding also showing substantial, though comparatively lower, coherence. The findings also indicate that preservice teachers frequently proposed coherent responses that were both specific and may foster students’ conceptual understanding. This study highlights that promoting coherence in professional noticing, particularly within the responding component, is vital for cultivating teaching practices that are both responsive and conceptually grounded.