PAPER ABSTRACT Beyond Show And Tell to Problem Solving: Exploring the Discrepancies between Mathematics Teacher’s Problem Solving Beliefs and Practices Prince Hamidu Armah Mathematics Education and Instructional Technology School of Education, University of Aberdeen, AB24 5UA, Aberdeen, United Kingdom www.abdn.ac.uk/education Email: r01pha12@abdn.ac.uk Tel: +44 (0)1224 274520 Mathematics teachers are confronted with a multitude of instructional impediments as a result of the current reform-oriented vision for teaching mathematics. One of such vision for mathematics instruction is the adoption of a problem solving teaching approach. But, any shift in pedagogy towards such teaching reform requires changes not only in the ‘institutionalised curriculum’ but most importantly deeper changes in teachers' beliefs system (Ernest, 1989b; Bishop, 1996). Many studies (e.g Halversceid & Rolka, 2006) have called for the attention to teachers beliefs as the focus of research and for understanding and improving teaching practices. Particularly, studies on the relationship between belief and practice have shown that teachers' beliefs play a significant role in shaping their instructional practices. However, studies that examine the discrepancies between teacher beliefs and practices specific to problem solving in mathematics remain sparse (Anderson, White & Sullivan, 2005). This paper seeks to discuss the relationship between beliefs and practices specific to mathematics teachers. It presents a critical literature appraisal that elucidates the potential disparities between teachers' problem solving beliefs and their teaching practices (Ernest, 2004; Raymond, 1997; Anderson, White & Sullivan, 2005) as well as how the social context of teaching mediates these theoretical constructs. The paper argues for espoused and enacted beliefs as impacting on teachers' practices. These beliefs are underpinned by the teacher's epistemological and ethical perspectives. These, in turn, influence teachers' conceptions of knowledge and the nature of mathematics as well as their views about mathematics pedagogy. Most importantly, the paper acknowledges the teacher's thought process and the constraints and opportunities of the classroom or school settings as the germane factors that influence the apparent incongruence between teachers' problem solving beliefs and practices. References 1. Anderson, J., White, P., & Sullivan, P. (2005). Using a schematic model to represent influences on, and relationships between, teachers’ problem-solving beliefs and practices. Mathematics Education Research Journal, 17(2), 9-38. 2. Bishop, S. (1996). Beliefs Shape Mathematics. Spectrum-London-Association of Christian Teachers-, 28, 131-142. 3. Ernest, P. (198b). The knowledge, beliefs and attitudes of the mathematics teacher: A model. Journal of education for teaching, 15(1), 13-33. 4. Ernest, P. (2004). The philosophy of mathematics education. Taylor & Francis e-Library (Adobe eReader Format). . Available: http://p4mriunpat.files.wordpress.com/2011/10/the-philosophy-of- mathematics-education-studies-in-mathematicseducation.pdf [Date Accessed: 1st March 2013]. 5. Halverscheid, S., and Rolka K (2006). Student Beliefs About Mathematics Encoded In Pictures And Words. In Novotna, J., Moraova, H., Kratka, M & Stehilokova, N. (Eds). Proceedings of the 30th Conference of the International Group for the Psychology of Mathematics Education, Vol3, pp. 233- 240. 6. Raymond, A. (1997). Inconsistency between a beginning elementary school teacher's mathematics beliefs and teaching practice. Journal for Research in Mathematics Education, 28(5), 550-576.