What is maths anxiety?
Maths anxiety is a very real condition, not dissimilar to PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder). It occurs when a person has experienced a traumatic event and the amygdala has stored that memory so that when the learner encounters it again, they instantly go into “fight or flight mode”, the body becomes stimulated with adrenalin and the brain shuts down. In maths, such an event may be being suddenly asked to say a time table fact or doing a test and passing it to another person to mark.
Children as young as six start to suffer from maths anxiety.
This can start the maths anxiety sequence which follows a pattern of:
- Afraid to have a go
- Not learning new skills
- Not having skills to build new learning
- Afraid to have a go
Dominic Petronzi from Derby University is undertaking studies in maths anxiety. If you are interested in taking part please read the following information and criteria.
Take part in a Maths Anxiety Study
Purpose of study:
This research aims to qualitatively obtain and analyse insights from secondary pupils in their GCSE educational years (with a diagnosis of dyscalculia) regarding their experiences – and potential limiting factors of this - and future directions.
Criteria for taking part:
To participate [1] you and your child must currently reside in the UK, [2] participating children must be aged 15-16 years, [3] both parent and child must provide consent, and [4] you should be fluent in English.
Procedure:
Research information and participant responses will be housed within Qualtrics, and participants will be provided with a link to this. The process is as follows:
[1] Parent and child to indicate their consent (on the informed consent document) and for parents to also verbally ask that their child is happy to take part.
[2] Children aged 15-16 years (educational years 10 and 11) will complete the Maths Anxiety Scale-UK, and we will request that parents/carers remain close by during the completion of the questions.
[3] Children aged 15-16 years will then respond to the open-ended questionnaire pertaining to their experiences of dyscalculia and/or experiences of maths learning difficulties, and we will again request that parents/carers remain close by during the completion of the questions.
The research has received ethical clearance by the University of Derby College of Health, Psychology and Social Care Research Ethics Committee. Further details can be obtained from: