LAS GARANTÍAS DE LOS DERECHOS Y LIBERTADES FUNDAMENTALES

Mathematics as we all know is a unique subject in every school curricula that pupils have to answer questions for which there is only one correct answer. This situation combined with many other factors such as unsuitable curricula and the culture of doing mathematics quickly, can lead students to a negative attributional style (Chinn, 2004; Chinn and Ashcroft, 2007) and finally to learned helplessness (Seligman, 1998). If unaddressed, this helplessness can persist into adulthood. Zaslavsky

38 (1999) looked at over 200 mathematics ‘autobiographies’ and observed a common pattern, namely that the respondents felt powerless, out of control and lacking self- esteem.

Mathematics anxiety has been operationally defined in different ways, for example as a “feeling of tension, apprehension or fear that interferes with mathematics performance” (Richardson and Suinn 1972:551), or as Cemen (1987) that it is a state of discomfort, which occurs in response to situations involving mathematics tasks that are perceived as threatening to their self-esteem. These definitions focus on different adverse outcomes of mathematics anxiety and illustrate the potential influence of anxiety on both the ability and the confidence to learn mathematics. Richardson and Suinn (1972) definition focuses particularly on the impact of anxiety on cognitive performance, while Cemen (1999) construction highlights the impact on self-esteem.

One definition of mathematics anxiety that is very common as described by Tobias and Weissbrod (1980:65) that it is, “The panic, helplessness, paralysis, and mental disorganisation that arises among some people when they are required to solve a mathematical problem”. Tobias and Weissbrod (1980), asserted that Mathematics anxiety is a serious and pervasive problem, especially in the community college setting. Students may experience mathematics anxiety in many forms and degrees, from ‘freezing up’ during a mathematics exam, to avoiding anything that has to do with numbers.

A more recent definition of anxiety has been defined as the emotion in which feelings of tension, worried thoughts and avoidance tendencies are observed. It is known to affect a large range of mental processes (Eysenck and Derakshan, 2011).One of such mental processes is the working memory (WM), known as the cognitive mechanism responsible for active maintenance and goal-directed manipulation of information (Cowan, 2011).

It has been argued by experts that “mathematics anxiety” can bring about widespread, intergenerational discomfort with the subject, which could lead to anything from fewer students pursuing mathematics and science careers to less

39 public interest in financial markets. “People are very happy to say they don’t like math,” this was reported by a Professor from the University of Chicago Psychology and the author of Choke, a 2010 book on brain responses to performance pressure. He further asserts that “No one walks around bragging that they cannot read, but it is perfectly socially acceptable to say you don’t like mathematics” (Beilock, 2010:161)

When a student has mathematics anxiety, it is more than just disliking it, but that he feels negative emotions when told to engage in an activity that requires numerical or mathematics skills. It adversely affects students’ attitudes to learning; it can cut off the working memory needed to learn and solve problems, according to Willis (2010), a neurologist based in California and author of the book “Learning to love Math”.

In perceiving a problem, a student first processes the information through the amygdala, the brain's emotional center, which then prioritises the information going to the prefrontal cortex, the part responsible for the brain's working memory and critical thinking. During stress, there is more activity in the amygdala than the prefrontal cortex; even a minor stressor as seeing a frowning face before answering a question can decrease a student's ability to remember and respond accurately (Willis, 2010).

According to Ansari (2008), the principal investigator for the Numerical Cognition Laboratory at the University of Western Ontario, in London, Ontario, “When engaged in mathematics problem-solving, highly mathematics-anxious individuals suffer from intrusive thoughts and ruminations. This takes up some of their processing and working memory. It's very much as though individuals with mathematics anxiety use up the brainpower they need for the problem on worrying.”

In a series of studies, Ansari (2008) and his colleagues at the Numerical Cognition Laboratory, have found that adults with high mathematics anxiety are more likely to have lower-than-typical ability to quickly recognise differences in numerical magnitudes, or the total number of items in a set, which is considered a form of dyscalculia.

40 As part of normal development, children become increasingly adept at identifying which of two numbers of items is bigger, but Ansari found those with high mathematics anxiety were slower and less accurate at that task, and brain scans showed activity different from that of people with low mathematics stress doing the same tasks. Due to the fact that understanding numerical magnitude is a foundation for other calculations, Ansari suggests that small, early deficiencies in that area can lead to difficulties, frustration, and negative reactions to mathematics problems over time (Ansari, 2008).

Moreover, mathematics anxiety can become a generational problem, with adults uncomfortable with mathematics passing negative feelings on to their children or students. This will eventually cause their children or students to develop a fear for the subject (Ansari, 2008).

Teachers who have mathematics anxiety need to confront and control their negative feelings, fears, and insecurities, to avoid unintentionally passing on these negative attributes to their students (Whyte and Anthony, 2012; Wood, 1988; Gresham, 2007).

2.7.1 MATHEMATICS ANXIETY (ITS ORIGIN)

Trujillo and Hadfield (1999) wrote the following about the origin of mathematics anxiety. The causes of mathematics anxiety can be subdivided into three areas namely, environmental, intellectual, and personality factors.

The environmental factors include negative experiences in the classroom; parental pressure; insensitive teachers; mathematics presented as rigid sets of rules and non- participatory classrooms (Dossel, 1993; Tobias, 1990; Furner and Brenan, 2004). The Intellectual factors include being taught with mismatched learning styles, student attitude and lack of perceived usefulness of mathematics (Cemen, 1987; Miller and Mitchell, 1994). Finally, the Personality factors entail a reluctance to ask questions due to shyness, low self-esteem, and viewing mathematics as a male domain.

According to Ashcraft, Kirk and Hopko (2002: 181-185), “Early reports suggested that mathematics anxiety is a non-intellectual factor; in the sense that it was

41 observed even in otherwise successful students, which nonetheless had serious consequences for educational and career-related choices.”

From this, it can then be seen that the origins of negative beliefs and anxiety about mathematics are as diverse as the individuals experiencing them.