How Can A Digital Platform Help Us Understand Challenges Of Pre-Service Elementary Teachers When Generating A Figural Pattern Based On An Algebraic Formula?

The purpose of this study is to characterize the processes and challenges that pre-service elementary teachers (PSETs) encounter when they are working on generating figural patterns based on given algebraic formulas. The students solved problems related to these figural patterns on a digital platform, Matistikk, designed and implemented by a group of researchers at NTNU. This platform allowed us to get a record of how problems were solved, a record which would be impossible to obtain by pencil and paper solutions. We analyze one student solution in an attempt to understand what could be typical misconceptions, strategies or errors.