Abstract
This article presents the answers given by 18 mathematics educators to a questionnaire about the role of a Real Analysis course in mathematics teacher education at university level, comparing them with the answers given by mathematicians to the same questionnaire in 2005. Participants of this research were selected among doctorate thesis supervisors in Mathematics Education, in the time period between 2006 and 2011, working at leading universities in Brazil. The data were analyzed according to the Content Analysis' methodological approach. We describe two categories of arguments that emerged from the data, according to which a Real Analysis course should be a mandatory part of the curriculum in prospective mathematics teacher education and compare them with the ones obtained in the study with the mathematicians in 2005. The results indicate a general convergence in the views of both professional groups, although subtle differences were detected.
Key words:
Mathematics Education; Mathematics Teacher Education; Teacher Knowledge; Real Analysis