maths anxiety: integrating theory and practice
TRANSCRIPT
Maths Anxiety: Integrating Theory and Practice
What We Hope To Achieve Today
● Raise awareness and understanding of
maths anxiety
○ Causes and interrelatedness
○ Impact
● Introduce practical strategies to address
maths anxiety
Defining Maths Anxiety
● “The panic, helplessness, paralysis, and mental disorganization that arises among some people when they are required to solve a mathematical problem” (Tobias and Weissbrod, 1980)
● “Feelings of tension, apprehension, or even dread that interferes with the ordinary manipulation of number and the solving of mathematical problems” (Ashcraft & Faust, 1994)
Some Maths Anxiety Questions…
1. How can/should it be measured?
2. How does it develop?
3. What mechanisms underpin the relationship between maths anxiety and performance?
4. How can it be reduced?
Measurement
1. Self-report scales
2. Brain function, e.g. fMRI
3. Psychophysiological reactivity, e.g. blood pressure and heart rate
4. Performance under pressure
5. Behaviours reflecting attentional processes, e.g. eye-movement or hypervigilance
Prevalence
● Only 7% of adults reported only positive classroom maths experiences from kindergarten through to college (Jackson & Leffingwell, 1999).
● According to Burns (1998) 2/3 of Americans fear and loathe maths.
● In a study of over 9000 students, Jones (2001) found that 25.9% had a moderate to high need of help with maths anxiety.
● 59% of 15 year-olds often worry that it will be difficult for them in maths classes (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, 2016).
● “a fair amount” to “much” maths anxiety in UK UG students (Hunt et al. 2011)
● “some” to “moderate” maths anxiety in the general US adult population (Hart & Ganley, 2019).
Prevalence
OECD data (2012) : Maths Anxiety in Boys and Girls aged 15
Correlates
● Maths attainment
● General and test anxiety
● Maths self-efficacy
● Maths attitudes
● Mathematical resilience
● Brain functions
● Gender
● Home numeracy environment
Risk factors
● Maths attainment
● General and test anxiety
● Maths self-efficacy
● Maths attitudes
● Mathematical resilience
● Brain functions
● Gender
● Home numeracy environment
● Numerical ability
● Dyscalculia
● Genetics
● Individual differences in working memory
● Teachers
● Schools and pedagogy
● Socio-economic position
● Cultural and social factors
● Other individual differences, e.g. cognitive appraisal and meta cognition
What comes first?
● Deficit model
● Debilitating effects model
● Bi-directional model
A masking effect
Negative affect & attitudes
Avoidance & poor engagement
Poor attentional control & panic
Low maths attainment
Early Development (Petronzi et al. 2017)
● 11 reception; 18 year 1; 12 year 2 children from 3 schools in England
● (13 boys, 28 girls)
● Children discussed day-to-day numeracy experiences
● Focus groups
Early Development (Petronzi et al. 2017)
● Those who were secure with numeracy expressed a desire for success and were motivated by reward. Teacher’s presence was motivating.
● In contrast, apprehensive children had a pronounced fear of failure and punishment; some teachers seen as a figure of punishment; numeracy was seen as competitive and hierarchical.
Strategies to Reduce Maths Anxiety
● Individual nature and context of maths anxiety.
● One size does not fit all (Stoehr, 2017).
● Class vs. individual strategies.
● Time and resources.
● Impact of current pandemic.
Use of Language
● Giving instructions - how do you describe a task?
● Avoid negative messages and debunk myths.
● Reward effort, not outcome. Purposeful mistakes help emphasise this.
The Nature of the Task
● How do children interpret and understand the task?
● Reflect on low threshold - high ceiling tasks.
● Use a graded approach and regularly recap prior learning.
● Embed active participation (Smith et al., 2000) and discussion (Klips, 2007).
Improving Attainment
● Truly understand the individual and focus any additional support on particular skills or content.
● How can you embed support within the school day?
● Supekar et al. (2015) conducted 1:1 sessions. (3 x 45 minutes) a week. Improved attainment and also reduced Maths Anxiety.
Relaxation Strategies
● What makes the individual feel calm?
● Encourage focused breathing (Bruyne et al., 2013).
● Create opportunities and activities to encourage mindfulness.
Expressive Writing
● Improve concentration and focus on Mathematics through removing worry from the working memory (Ramirez et al., 2013).
● Give the opportunity to write about thoughts and feelings prior to mathematical situations.
● Is there an option for a Mathematics journal?
Having a Growth Mindset
● Growth mindset vs. fixed mindset (Yeager & Dweck, 2012).
● Develop Mathematical Resilience (Lee & Johnston-Wilder, 2017)○ Having a growth mindset○ Knowing that Mathematics can have a personal value
(Wang et al., 2015)○ Knowing how to work at Mathematics○ Knowing how to find support
Future Directions
● The Mathematics Anxiety Research Group - crash course in maths anxiety. www.marg.wp.derby.ac.uk
● Focus on parent-child interactions informing interventions.
● Interventions based on cognitive appraisal.
● Supporting teachers through raised awareness and collaboration.
Any Questions?
References
Ashcraft, M. H., & Faust, M. W. (1994). Mathematics anxiety and mental arithmetic performance: An exploratory investigation. Cognition and Emotion, 8, 97–125.
Brunyé, T. T., Mahoney, C. R., Giles, G. E., Rapp, D. N., Taylor, H. A., & Kanarek, R. B. (2013). Learning to relax: Evaluating four brief interventions for overcoming the negative emotions accompanying math anxiety. Learning and Individual Differences, 27, 1-7.
Burns, M. (1998). Math: Facing an American phobia. Math Solutions Publications.
Hart, S. A., & Ganley, C. (2019). The nature of math anxiety in adults: Prevalence and correlates. Journal of Numerical Cognition, 5, 122-139.
Hunt, T. E., Clark-Carter, D., & Sheffield, D. (2011). The development and part-validation of a U.K. scale for mathematics anxiety. Journal of Psychoeducational Assessment, 29, 455.
Jackson, C., & Leffingwell, R. (1999). The role of instructors in creating math anxiety in students from kindergarten through college. Mathematics Teacher, 92, 583-587.
Jones, W. (2001). Applying psychology to the teaching of basic math: A case study. Inquiry, 6, 60-65.
Klips, M. J. (2007) Math Anxiety Interventions. Unpublished Masters Thesis. The College at Brockport.
Lee, C. and Johnston-Wilder, S. (2017) ‘The Construct of Mathematical Resilience’ in Xolocotzi, E. U. (ed.) Understanding Emotions in Mathematical Thinking and Learning. Oxford: Elsevier, pp. 269-291.
References
Petronzi, D., Staples, P., Sheffield, D., Hunt, T. E., & Fitton-Wilde, S. (2017). Numeracy apprehension in young children: Insights from children aged 4-7 years and primary care providers. Psychology and Education, 54, 1-26.
Preis, C., & Biggs, B. T. (2001). Can Instructors Help Learners Overcome Math Anxiety? Australian Teacher Education Association Journal, 28, 6-10.
Ramirez, G., Gunderson, E. A., Levine, S. C. and Beilock, S. L. (2013) ‘Math Anxiety, Working Memory, and Math Achievement in Early Elementary School’, Journal of Cognition and Development, 14(2), pp. 187 - 202.
Smith, C. L., Maclin, D., Houghton, C. and Hennessey, M. G. (2000) ‘Sixth-Grades Students' Epistemologies of Science: The Impact of School Science Experiences on Epistemological Development’, Cognition and Instruction, 18(3), pp. 349 - 422.
Stoehr, K. J. (2017) ‘Mathematics Anxiety: One Size Does Not Fit All’, Journal of Teacher Education, 68(1), pp. 69 - 84.
Supekar, K., Iuculano, T., Chen, L. and Menon, V. (2015) ‘Remediation of Childhood Math Anxiety and Associated Neural Circuits Through Cognitive Tutoring’, The Journal of Neuroscience, 35(36), pp. 12574 - 12583.
Tobias, S., & Weissbrod, C. (1980). Anxiety and mathematics – an update. Harvard Educational Review, 50, 63-70.
References
Yeager, D. S. and Dweck, C. S. (2012) ‘Mindsets That Promote Resilience: When Students Believe That Personal Characteristics Can Be Developed’,Educational Psychologist, 47(4), pp. 302 - 314.
Wang, Z. Lukowski, S. L., Hart, S. A., Lyons, I. M., Thompson, L. A., Kovas, Y., Mazzocco, M. M. M., Plomin, R., & Petrill, S. S. Is math anxiety always bad for learning? The role of math motivation. Psychological Science, 1-14.