Teachers' spatial literacy as visualization, reasoning, and communication

This paper conceptualizes spatial literacy as consisting of three overlapping domains: visualization, reasoning, and communication. By considering these domains, this study explores different aspects of spatial literacy to better understand how a group of mathematics teachers reasoned about spatial tasks. Seventy-five preservice and inservice teachers worked on problems that involved spatial objects, their properties, and their relationships. Teachers' responses suggested that their spatial literacy skills were underdeveloped with deficiencies most evident on problems that were solvable by dimensional reasoning. Poor vocabulary and misconceptions hindered teachers' performance. Teachers who used multiple reasoning strategies were more likely to solve a problem correctly.

► Teaching experience and education have positive effects on spatial literacy. ► Using multiple reasoning strategies had positive effects on spatial literacy. ► Many teachers failed to make use of multiple reasoning strategies. ► Teachers struggled with the vocabulary of spatial objects. ► Many teachers do not possess the spatial literacy skills intrinsic to the curriculum.