Mathematical world views in tertiary education: a quasi-longitudinal and cross-sectional study of prospective teachers and mathematics students

Beliefs about mathematics, or mathematical world views, play a central role in shaping teaching practices and students’ learning strategies. This study examines the beliefs of prospective teachers and mathematics students through a quasi-longitudinal and cross-sectional design. A structured questionnaire was administered to 327 participants, drawing on an extended factor model of mathematical world views. Confirmatory factor analysis largely validated this framework, with only minor inconsistencies. Results indicate small but significant shifts among prospective teachers over the course of their studies, with increasing agreement on dynamic and creative aspects of mathematics and decreasing emphasis on static, procedural orientations. Cross-sectional comparisons reveal differences in the agreement of various mathematical world views between mathematics students and prospective teachers, with mathematics students showing a stronger preference for formal and problem-solving aspects. Correlation analyses illustrate the complex interplay of the analysed beliefs. By combining longitudinal and cross-sectional perspectives, this study extends previous work and offers a more nuanced picture of how disciplinary orientation and teacher education influence mathematical world views. The findings establish a status quo of beliefs in tertiary education and highlight the potential for targeted interventions to broaden and enrich prospective teachers’ conceptions of mathematics.