Negative Effects Of Math Anxiety

The book, Cooperative Learning in Higher Education: Across the Disciplines, Across the Academy, written by Barbra Millis, defines math anxiety as “feelings of tension or anxiety that interfere with the manipulation of numbers and the solving of mathematical problems in a wide variety of ordinary life and academic situations” (57). Deborah Russell claims math anxiety stems from an unpleasant experience with math (“How to Overcome Math Anxiety”), most likely, a student was taught a mathematical concept or formula, but didn’t understand the math behind it, causing the student to feel tense or stressed. The tension someone who suffers from math anxiety feels when he is presented with a math related problem affects his ability to think clearly,

According to Burns, “timed tests do not measure what a child understands, but what they can recall” (Math: Facing an American Phobia 53). Giving students with a lack of skills who work slower than an average student also risks causing them to implement the incorrect practice or develop a negative attitude towards math (53).

If math anxiety continues to develop and is not dealt with, it can lead to depression, low self-esteem, and underperformance, according to Niels Kryger and Birte Ravn in their book Learning Beyond Cognition (223). In an article Deborah Russell wrote for ThoughtCo., she states six ways for students to overcome math anxiety: maintaining a positive attitude, asking questions, regularly practicing the material, don’t just read over class notes, actually do the math, hiring a tutor or a peer if need be, and be persistent (“How to Overcome Math

Students assume they are incapable of understanding a concept because they do not understand it the way it was taught to them. In most cases, that is not true. There are several different learning styles as well as several different teaching styles so a tutor or a friend could approach the material better suited to a student’s learning style. Russell’s sixth and final strategy is to be persistent. The key to making this strategy successful is for students to understand that everyone makes mistakes, and that is okay as long as they learn from their mistakes. It is important for students to keep trying, even if they’re wrong a few times (“How to Overcome Math Anxiety”).

In addition to the teacher teaching concepts in a way most students can understand, Burns also claims the best way teachers can prevent and reduce math anxiety is to “immerse children in doing mathematics by involving them in activities, explorations, and experiments in which they use mathematics and, by doing so, learning mathematical concepts and skills” (69). Instead of standing in front of a class lecturing, math teachers could approach teaching with a hands-on approach. For example, a third teacher is teaching her students how to add