Math Anxiety
Mark H. Ashcraft defines math anxiety as "a feeling of tension, apprehension, or fear that interferes with math performance" (2002, p. 1). It is a phenomenon that is often considered when examining students' problems in mathematics. According to the American Psychological Association, mathematical anxiety is often linked to testing anxiety. This anxiety can cause distress and likely causes a dislike and avoidance of all math-related tasks. The academic study of math anxiety originates as early as the 1950s, where Mary Fides Gough introduced the term ''mathemaphobia'' to describe the phobia-like feelings of many towards mathematics. The first math anxiety measurement scale was developed by Richardson and Suinn in 1972. Since this development, several researchers have examined math anxiety in empirical studies. Hembree (1990) conducted a meta-analysis of 151 studies concerning math anxiety. The study determined that math anxiety is related to poor math performance on math achievement tests and to negative attitudes concerning math. Hembree also suggests that math anxiety is directly connected with math avoidance. Ashcraft (2002) suggests that highly anxious math students will avoid situations in which they have to perform mathematical tasks. Unfortunately, math avoidance results in less competency, exposure and math practice, leaving students more anxious and mathematically unprepared to achieve. In college and university, anxious math students take fewer math courses and tend to feel negative towards the subject. In fact, Ashcraft found that the correlation between math anxiety and variables such as confidence and motivation are strongly negative. According to Schar, because math anxiety can cause math avoidance, anPerformance
The impact of mathematics anxiety on mathematics performance has been studied in more recent literature. An individual with math anxiety does not necessarily lack ability in mathematics, rather, they cannot perform to their full potential due to the interfering symptoms of their anxiety. Math anxiety manifests itself in a variety of ways, including physical, psychological, and behavioral symptoms, that can all disrupt a student's mathematical performance. The strong negative correlation between high math anxiety and low achievement is often thought to be due to the impact of math anxiety on working memory. Working memory has a limited capacity. A large portion of this capacity is dedicated to problem solving when solving mathematical tasks. However, in individuals with math anxiety, much of this space is taken up by anxious thoughts, thus compromising the individual's ability to perform. In addition, a frequent reliance in schools on high-stakes and timed testing, where students tend to feel the most anxiety, can lead to lower achievement for math anxious individuals. Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) results demonstrate that students experiencing high math anxiety demonstrate mathematics scores that are 34 points lower than students who do not have math anxiety, equivalent to one full year of school. Besides, researchers Elisa Cargnelutti et al show that the influence of mathematical anxiety on math-related performance increases over time due to the accumulation of passive experience in the subject or other factors like more requirements on mathematics as children grow up. These findings demonstrate the clear link between math anxiety and reduced levels of achievement, suggesting that alleviating math anxiety may lead to a marked improvement in student achievement.Anxiety rating scale
A rating scale for mathematics anxiety was written about in 1972 by Richardson and Suinn. Richardson and Suinn defined mathematical anxiety as "feelings of apprehension and tension concerning manipulation of numbers and completion of mathematical problems in various contexts". Richardson and Suinn introduced the MARS (Mathematics Anxiety Rating Scale) in 1972. Elevated scores on the MARS test translate to high math anxiety. The authors presented the normative data, including a mean score of 215.38 with a standard deviation of 65.29, collected from 397 students that replied to an advertisement for behavior therapy treatment for math anxiety. For test-retest reliability, the Pearson product-moment coefficient was used and a score of 0.85 was calculated, which was favorable and comparable to scores found on other anxiety tests. Richardson and Suinn validated the construct of this test by sharing previous results from three other studies that were very similar to the results achieved in this study. They also administered the Differential Aptitude Test, a 10-minute math test including simple to complex problems. Calculation of the Pearson product-moment correlation coefficient between the MARS test and Differential Aptitude Test scores was −0.64 (p < .01), indicating that higher MARS scores relate to lower math test scores and "since high anxiety interferes with performance, and poor performance produces anxiety, this result provides evidence that the MARS does measure mathematics anxiety". This test was intended for use in diagnosing math anxiety, testing efficacy of different math anxiety treatment approaches and possibly designing an anxiety hierarchy to be used in desensitization treatments. The MARS test is of interest to those in counseling psychology and the test is used profusely in math anxiety research. It is available in several versions of varying length and is considered psychometrically sound. Other tests are often given to measure different dimensionalities of math anxiety, such as Elizabeth Fennema and Julia Sherman's Fennema-Sherman Mathematics Attitudes Scales (FSMAS). The FSMAS evaluates nine specific domains using Likert-type scales: attitude toward success, mathematics as a male domain, mother's attitude, father's attitude, teacher's attitude, confidence in learning mathematics, mathematics anxiety, affectance motivation and mathematics usefulness. Despite the introduction of newer instrumentation, the use of the MARS test appears to be the educational standard for measuring math anxiety due to its specificity and prolific use.Math and culture
While there are overarching similarities concerning the acquisition of math skills, researchers have shown that children's mathematical abilities differ across countries. In Canada, students score substantially lower in math problem-solving and operations than students in Korea, India and Singapore. Researchers have conducted thorough comparisons between countries and determined that in some areas, such as Taiwan and Japan, parents place more emphasis on effort rather than one's innate intellectual ability in school success. By placing a higher emphasis on effort rather than one's innate intellectual ability, they are helping their child develop aMath and gender
Another difference in mathematic abilities often explored in research concerns gender disparities. There has been research examining gender difference in performance on standardized tests across various countries. Beller and Gafni's have shown that children at approximately nine years of age do not show consistent gender difference in relation to math skills. However, in 17 out of the 20 countries examined in this study, 13-year-old boys tended to score higher than girls. Moreover, mathematics is often labeled as a masculine ability; as a result, girls often have low confidence in their math capabilities. These gender stereotypes can reinforce low confidence in girls and can cause math anxiety as research has shown that performance on standardized math tests is affected by one's confidence. As a result, educators have been trying to abolish this stereotype by fostering confidence in math in all students in order to avoid math anxiety.Kail, R.V., & Zolner, T. (2005). Children. Toronto: Prentice Hall. While on the other hand, results obtained by Szczygiel, Monika show that girls have a higher level of anxiety on testing and in total, although there is no gender difference in general learning math anxiety. Therefore, the gender gap in math anxiety may result from the type of anxiety. Tests triggers greater anxiety in girls compared with boys, but they feel same level of anxiety learning math.Math pedagogy
The principles of mathematics are generally understood at an early age; preschoolers can comprehend the majority of principles underlying counting. By kindergarten, it is common for children to use counting in a more sophisticated manner by adding and subtracting numbers. While kindergarteners tend to use their fingers to count, this habit is soon abandoned and replaced with a more refined and efficient strategy; children begin to perform addition and subtraction mentally at approximately six years of age. When children reach approximately eight years of age, they can retrieve answers to mathematical equations from memory. With proper instruction, most children acquire these basic mathematical skills and are able to solve more complex mathematical problems with sophisticated training. (Kail & Zolner, 2005). High-risk teaching styles are often explored to gain a better understanding of math anxiety. Goulding, Rowland, and Barber (2002) suggest that there are linkages between a teacher's lack of subject knowledge and ability to plan teaching material effectively. These findings suggest that teachers that do not have a sufficient background in mathematics may struggle with the development of comprehensive lesson plans for their students. Similarly, Laturner's research (2002) shows that teachers with certification in math are more likely to be passionate and committed about teaching math than those without certification. However, those without certification vary in their commitment to the profession depending on coursework preparation. A study conducted by Kawakami, Steele, Cifa, Phills, and Dovidio (2008) examined attitudes towards math and behavior during math examinations. The study examined the effect of extensive training in teaching women how to approach math. The results showed that women who were trained to approach rather than avoid math showed a positive implicit attitude towards math. These findings were only consistent with women low in initial identification with math. This study was replicated with women who were either encouraged to approach math or who received neutral training. Results were consistent and demonstrated that women taught to approach math had an implicit positive attitude and completed more math problems than women taught to approach math in a neutral manner. Johns, Schmader, and Martens (2005) conducted a study in which they examined the effect of teaching stereotype threat as a means of improving women's math performance. The researchers concluded that women tended to perform worse than men when problems were described as math equations. However, women did not differ from men when the test sequence was described as problem solving or in a condition in which they learned about stereotype threats. This research has practical implications. The results suggested that teaching students about stereotype threat could offer a practical means of reducing its detrimental effects and lead to an improvement in a girl's performance and mathematical ability, leading the researchers to conclude that educating female teachers about stereotype threat can reduce its negative effects in the classroom.Common beliefs
According to Margaret Murray, female mathematicians in the United States have almost always been a minority. Although the exact difference fluctuates with the times, as she has explored in her book ''Women Becoming Mathematicians: Creating a Professional Identity in Post-World War II America'', "Since 1980, women have earned over 17 percent of the mathematics doctorates....In schools
According toTheoretical "solutions"
There have been many studies that show parent involvement in developing a child's educational processes is essential. A student's success in school is increased if their parents are involved in their education both at home and school (Henderson & Map, 2002). As a result, one of the easiest ways to reduce math anxiety is for the parent to be more involved in their child's education. In addition, research has shown that a parent's perception on mathematics influences their child's perception and achievement in mathematics (Yee & Eccles, 1988). Furthermore, studies by Herbert P. Ginsburg, Columbia University, show the influence of parents' and teachers' attitudes on "'the child's expectations in that area of learning.'... It is less the actual teaching and more the attitude and expectations of the teacher or parents that count". This is further supported by a survey of Montgomery County, Maryland students who "pointed to their parents as the primary force behind the interest in mathematics".Zaslavsky, Claudia, ''Fear of Math'', pages 198-199. (New Brunswick, New Jersey: Rutgers University Press, 1994) Claudia Zaslavsky contends that math has two components. The first component is to calculate the answer. This component also has two subcomponents, namely the answer and the process or method used to determine the answer. Focusing more on the process or method enables students to make mistakes, but not 'fail at math'. The second component is to understand the mathematical concepts that underlay the problem being studied. "... and in this respect studying mathematics is much more like studying, say, music or painting than it is like studying history or biology." Amongst others supporting this viewpoint is the work of* Accommodating for different learning styles * Creating a variety of testing environments * Designing positive experiences in math classes * Refraining from tying self-esteem to success with math * Emphasizing that everyone makes mistakes in mathematics * Making math relevant * Letting students have some input into their own evaluations * Allowing for different social approaches to learning mathematics * Emphasizing the importance of original, quality thinking rather than rote manipulation of formulasHackworth (1992) suggests that the following activities can help students in reducing and mitigating mathematical anxiety:
* Discuss and write about math feelings; * Become acquainted with good math instruction, as well as study techniques; * Recognize what type of information needs to be learned; * Be an active learner, and create problem-solving techniques; * Evaluate your own learning; * Develop calming/positive ways to deal with fear of math, including visualization, positive messages, relaxation techniques, frustration breaks; * Use gradual, repeated success to build math confidence in studentsB R Alimin and D B Widjajanti (2019) recommend teachers:
* Never make students embarrassed in front of the class * Build harmony and friendship between teachers and students * Give hints to students so that they can learn from mistakes * Encourage students not to give up when they encounter with challenges * Teach students to help each other working on math problemSeveral studies have shown that relaxation techniques can be used to help alleviate anxiety related to mathematics. In her workbook ''Conquering Math Anxiety'', Cynthia Arem offers specific strategies to reduce math avoidance and anxiety. One strategy she advocates for is relaxation exercises and indicates that by practicing relaxation techniques on a regular basis for 10–20 minutes students can significantly reduce their anxiety. Dr. Edmundo Jacobson's Progressive Muscle Relaxation taken from the book Mental Toughness Training for Sports, Loehr (1986) can be used in a modified form to reduce anxiety as posted on the website HypnoGenesis. According to Mina Bazargan and Mehdi Amiri, Modular Cognitive Behavior Therapy (MCBT) can reduce the level of mathematical anxiety and increase students' self-esteem. Visualization has also been used effectively to help reduce math anxiety. Arem has a chapter that deals with reducing test anxiety and advocates the use of visualization. In her chapter titled Conquer Test Anxiety (Chapter 9) she has specific exercises devoted to visualization techniques to help the student feel calm and confident during testing. Studies have shown students learn best when they are
See also
* Cognitive science of mathematics * Dyscalculia, a specific developmental disorder *References
* *Game, P. (n.d.). ''Overcoming math anxiety: 12 evidence-based tips that work''. Prodigy Education. Retrieved November 30, 2021, fromExternal links