An Initial Investigation into the Mathematical Background of Those Who Pass the CSET for Mathematics

Abstract

Faced with a chronic shortage of single subject mathematics teachers and a directive from the federal legislation No Child Left Behind to ensure that all students are taught by highly qualified teachers, California instituted a new subject-matter competency exam, the California Subject Exam for Teachers for Mathematics, and created a new Single Subject Credential in Foundational-Level Mathematics. An initial investigation indicates that many teacher candidates who have passed the CSET and entered single subject mathematics credential programs have taken few university-level mathematics classes, raising the question of whether they have the appropriate mathematical content knowledge to teach secondary mathematics.