To students, maths has always been an academic term for fear and anxiety, especially for younger students. It is the kind of fear that affects students at every level of academic stairs. According to an analysis, in India, roughly 50% of secondary students suffer from maths anxiety. Don’t worry, we have got your back with these amazing tips on how to manage math anxiety so, tag along!
Being just another subject, why does it bother students so much? Let’s look into the aspects of maths that people fear.
Why Does Maths Scare Students So Much?
According to many experts, the very maths learning anxiety stems from its compulsoriness. Maths is a subject that everyone in the world needs throughout their lives, like when they travel, work, keep track of their money, and on and on. It is a subject or skill that kids from grades 1 through 10 learn in school. In general, you need to think analytically and logically and do a lot of practice to get good at maths.
Too bad that a lot of students get anxious and stressed out when they have to deal with the subject. The stress of maths can make it hard for a student to understand the material later on in life. To put it another way, maths worry can make people not good at maths.
Some Factors that Contribute to Maths Anxiety
Many factors cause anxiety and nervousness in students about maths.
- Lack of Positive Attitude: One of the main factors that contribute to maths anxiety is simply a lack of positive attitude towards the subject. Sometimes it is the lack of positivity by the teacher, sometimes the parents, and sometimes, it is the students themselves. This feeling of negativity towards the subject culminates in bad grades and anxiety.
- Scared of Making Mistakes: Most of the time the students are too scared to make mistakes. This makes learning a harder and longer road to cover. Mistakes teach us how to do it the right way after getting it wrong.
- Lack of Student-Subject Connection: Sometimes, students’ maths nervousness and fear come from not being able to connect with the subject. It’s hard for students to make a good connection between themselves and maths. They think that maths is really hard and scary. This also makes it harder for them to learn and understand the subject’s ideas.
- Wrong or Inapt Teaching Methods: There are times when the way students are taught makes it hard for them to understand. Now we know where fear comes from. If a student doesn’t understand the ideas, methods, and techniques correctly, he or she won’t be able to do the questions and problems correctly. This will make the student lose confidence and become afraid of maths.
- Basics Not Clear: Another factor that makes it hard for students to get better grades and be afraid of maths is not having the basic concepts clear in their heads. When the basics are not clear, students are scared to move to an advanced approach which is needed as they are promoted.
How to Manage Math Anxiety and Excel in Mathematics
Are your exams coming up and you don’t know how to manage your maths anxiety? Don’t worry! We are here with some of our best tips to help you get over your fear and ace your exams.
1. Strengthen Your Basic Skills
- People always say that a strong base makes a strong building. In the same way, if work is put into building and improving a student’s basic maths skills, the chance that they will become afraid of maths will go down.
- Therefore, if students learn the subject’s basic ideas and skills well and practice them often, they will find it easy to move on to more advanced ideas.
- Take help from your teachers and ask them to give you some extra time to help clarify your doubts about the basics of maths.
- Set aside time to spend looking for the basics of maths that you need to clarify and practice.
2. Approach the Concepts Differently
- Sometimes students don’t understand how something is done, or they may understand a subject or idea differently. They can come up with their math symbols, pictures, or ideas to help them understand the material.
- It’s fine for students to use these kinds of tricks and methods because the end goal is to understand the idea.
- Maths is as much about reflecting on the concepts as it is about practicing. So, give yourself time to understand the concepts in detail.
3. Make Maths Exciting and Fun
- Maths is always thought to be one of the hardest subjects for students. But if it were made fun and artistic for kids, they would be more likely to learn and not be afraid of it. Basic maths doesn’t change; it always is the same.
- We just need to learn the coolest and most creative ways to solve problems and questions so that we remember the ideas and methods for a long time and don’t get scared of the subject.
4. Work on Your Confidence
- Confidence is a significant factor that can have a profound impact on the development or reduction of Mathematics Anxiety or anxiety.
- Parents and teachers should assist pupils who experience fear or anxiety about mathematics by enhancing their self-assurance and providing motivation to excel in the subject.
- Parents and instructors should strive to instill a sense of confidence in pupils and help them realize their potential to excel in mathematics.
5. Seek Appropriate Guidance
- The parent’s willingness to offer appropriate advice significantly influences a child’s education. When a child encounters difficulties or struggles with their academics, they often turn to their parents for assistance.
- Receiving appropriate guidance from parents can enhance a child’s learning capabilities and improve their academic achievement.
- Parents should adopt a constructive approach and provide guidance to their children in a way that encourages them to alter their outlook and attitude toward mathematics.
Bottom Line
Mathematics is widely regarded by students as one of the most challenging courses, causing a great deal of fear and apprehension among the majority of students. However, if pupils adopt a positive mindset and get guidance from their professors and parents through various methods, they can successfully overcome their phobia of mathematics. Subsequently, the students will get a comprehensive understanding of the concepts and theories with effortless proficiency.
