Exploring mathematical literacy for preservice teachers: Identifying contexts, contents, and activities

Mathematics preservice teachers need to be well-prepared to teach students, particularly in fostering mathematical literacy, as the Indonesian government currently emphasizes literacy in both reading and mathematics. This study aims to describe preservice teachers’ ability to identify mathematical literacy questions in terms of: 1) the context and content of the questions, and 2) the activities that support mathematical literacy. This study employed a quantitative descriptive research design using a survey method. Data were collected through a questionnaire administered to 176 mathematics preservice teachers from two universities in Yogyakarta. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistical techniques, including frequency and percentage distributions, to describe preservice teachers’ responses. The findings reveal that 1) preservice teachers were able to identify scientific and personal contexts, but had difficulties in recognizing social and scientific contexts. They successfully identified contents related to space and shape, data and uncertainty, and quantity, but faced challenges with change and relationships. Furthermore, 2) preservice teachers demonstrated the ability to distinguish activities that support mathematical literacy. These findings provide insights for designing appropriate activities to strengthen preservice teachers’ ability to identify mathematical literacy questions or design the questions themselves.