Some studies that focus on prospective mathematics teachers' learning have investigated interventions to improve their problem solving. For example, Szydlik, studied an approach to help prospective teachers to become autonomous problem solvers by promoting community autonomy than autonomy of individuals. The participants worked on"demanding problems" in small ups, then discussed their findings, strategies, solutions and arguments. The authors found that the participants experienced a broadening in the acceptable methods of solving problems. They concluded that a classroom focusing on problem solving using variety of strategies, reflection on the process of problem solving, and engagement in the process of exploration, conjecture, and argument can help prospective teachers develop mathematical beliefs that are consistent with autonomous behavior.
With a different focus, Guberman and Leikin(2013) studied the development of prospective teachers' problem-solving competencies through the use of multiple- solution tasks. They identified the participants' strategies used in solving the multiple solution elementary mathematics problems and their ability to produce multiple solutions to the problems they solved. They found that the multiple-solution tasks were effective in helping the participants, whether high or low achievers in mathematics, to significantly improve their problem-solving competencies. There was also a significant shift in the participants' problem-solving strategies for multiple- solution tasks from mainly trial and error strategies used in the pre-test towards systematic strategies in the post-test. By the end of the course, the participants were solving problems flexibly, changing representations used, and employing more advanced problem-solving strategies
In this study the focus is not on improving the prospective teachers' problem solving but their understanding of the process for teaching. The emphasis is on a self-study process in which the prospective teachers record and learn from their own experiences solving mathematical problems through individual self-reflection and collaboration with peers. Thus the study offers an approach that highlights self-study and personal experience as a basis of prospective teachers' leaming.