AN EXPLORATION OF PRIMARY SCHOOL TEACHERS’ MATHS ANXIETY USING INTERPRETATIVE PHENOMENOLOGICAL ANALYSIS

Yıl 2021, Cilt: 10 Sayı: 1, 32 - 49, 30.06.2021

Jane Dove Jane Montague Thomas E. Hunt

Öz

Primary school teachers are important in children’s learning of mathematics, and maths anxiety development has been partly attributed to children’s classroom experiences (Das & Das, 2013). Maths anxiety was explored in UK primary school teachers, with a view to understanding its development and impact. Data from four semi-structured individual interviews were analysed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA), which facilitates a deeper knowledge of individuals’ personal experience. Three key themes emerged: “experiencing the psychological consequences of maths anxiety”, “social influences” and “the consequences of experiencing maths anxiety as a teaching professional”. The findings contribute to our understanding of the influence of maths anxiety on teachers and teaching practices.

Anahtar Kelimeler

Maths anxiety, qualitative research, primary school teachers, experience of teaching.

Kaynakça

• Ahmed, W. (2018). Developmental trajectories of math anxiety during adolescence: Associations with STEM career choice. Journal of Adolescence, 67, 158-166. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.adolescence. 2018.06.01
• Ahmed, W., Minnaert, A., Kuyper H., & van der Werf, G. (2012). Reciprocal relationships between math self-concept and math anxiety. Learning and Individual Differences, 22, 385-389. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lindif.2011.12.004
• Alexander, L., & Martray, C. (1989). The development of an abbreviated version of the mathematics anxiety rating scale. Measurement and Evaluation in Counseling and Development, 38, 485-490.
• Ashcraft, M. H., & Krause, J. A. (2007). Working memory, math performance, and math anxiety. Psychonomic Bulletin & Review, 14, 243-248.
• Bandalos, D. L., Yates, K., & Thorndike–Christ, T. (1995). Effects of math self-concept, perceived self-efficacy and attributions for failure and success on test anxiety. Journal of Educational Psychology, 87, 611-623. https://psycnet.apa.org/doi/10.1037/0022-0663.87.4.611
• Bandura, A. (1982). The assessment and predictive generality of self-percepts of efficacy. Journal of behavior therapy and experimental psychiatry, 13, 195-199.
• Bandura, A. (1986). Fearful expectations and avoidant actions as co-effects of perceived self- inefficacy. American Psychologist, 41, 1389-1391.
• Bandura, A. (1994). Self-efficacy. In V. S. Ramachaudran (Ed.), Encyclopedia of human behavior (Vol. 4, pp. 71-81). New York: Academic Press.
• Barroso, C., Ganley, C. M., McGraw, A. L., Geer, E. A., Hart, S. A., & Daucourt, M. C. (2021). A meta-analysis of the relation between math anxiety and math achievement. Psychological Bulletin, 147, 134–168. https://doi.org/10.1037/bul0000307
• Beilock, S. L. & Willingham, D. T. (2014). Math anxiety: Can teachers help students reduce it? American Educator, summer, 28, 32-43.
• Beilock, S. L., Gunderson, E. A., Ramirez, G., & Levine, S. C. (2010). Female teachers’ math anxiety affects girls’ math achievement. PNAS, 107, 1860-1863. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.0910967107
• Bekdemir, M. (2010). The pre-service teachers' mathematics anxiety related to depth of negative experiences in mathematics classroom while they were students. Educational Studies in Mathematics, 75, 311-328. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10649-010-9260-7
• Bennison, A., & Goos, M. (2013). Teacher identity and numeracy: Developing an analytic lens for understanding numeracy teacher identity. In V. Steinle, L. Ball & C. Bardini (Eds.), Mathematics education: Yesterday, today and tomorrow (Proceedings of the 36th annual conference of the Mathematics Education Research Group of Australasia, Vol. 1, pp. 90-97). MERGA.
• Bong, M., & Skaalvik, E. M. (2003). Academic self-concept and self-efficacy: How different are they really? Educational Psychology Review, 15, 1-40. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1021302408382
• Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2006). Using thematic analysis in psychology. Qualitative Research in Psychology, 3, 77-101. http://dx.doi.org/10.1191/1478088706qp063oa
• British Psychological Society (2010). Code of human research ethics. British Psychological Society. Retrieved March 31, 2021, from INF180 2014 (bps.org.uk)
• Brocki, J. M. & Wearden, A. J. (2006). A critical evaluation of the use of interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) in health psychology. Psychology and Health, 21, 87- 108. https://doi.org/10.1080/14768320500230185
• Carey, E., Hill, F., Devine, A., & Szücs, D. (2016). The chicken or the egg? The direction of the relationship between mathematics anxiety and mathematics performance. Frontiers in psychology, 6, 1987. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2015.01987
• Choe, K. W., Jenifer, J. B., Rozek, C. S., Berman, M. G., & Beilock, S. L. (2019). Calculated avoidance: Math anxiety predicts math avoidance in effort-based decision-making. Science Advances, 5(11), 1-9, eaay1062. https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.aay1062
• Cooper, R., Fleischer, A., & Cotton, F. A. (2012). Building connections: An interpretative phenomenological analysis of qualitative research: Students’ learning experiences. Qualitative Report, 17(1), 1-16. http://www.nova.ed/ssss/QR/QR17/cooper.pdf
• Das, R., & Das, G. C. (2013). Math anxiety: The poor problem-solving factor in school mathematics. International Journal of Scientific and Research Publications, 3, 1-5.
• Devine, A., Fawcett, K., Szűcs, D. & Dowker., A. (2012). Gender differences in mathematics anxiety and the relation to mathematics performance while controlling for test anxiety. Behavioural and Brain Functions, 8. https://doi.org/10.1186/1744-9081-8-33
• Dowker, A., Sarkar, A., & Looi, C. (2016). Mathematics anxiety: What have we learned in 60years? Frontiers in Psychology, 7, 1-16. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2016.00508
• Gresham, G. (2018). Preservice to inservice: Does mathematics anxiety change with teaching experience? Journal of Teacher Education, 69, 90-107. https://doi.org/10.1177%2F0022487117702580
• Gunderson, E. A., Ramirez, G., Levine, S. C., & Beilock, S. L. (2012). The role of parents and teachers in the development of gender-related math attitudes. Sex Roles, 66, 153-166. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11199 011 9996 2
• Hamza, E. G. A., & Helal, A. M. (2013). Maths anxiety in college students across majors: A cross-cultural study. British Education Studies Association, Educational futures, 5, 58-61.
• Hembree, R. (1990). The nature, effects, and relief of mathematics anxiety. Journal of Research for Mathematics Education, 21, 33-46. https://doi.org/10.2307/749455
• Hunt, T. E., Clark-Carter, D., & Sheffield, D. (2011). The development and part validation of a UK scale for mathematics anxiety. Journal of Psychoeducational Assessment, 29, 455-466. https://doi.org/10.1177%2F0734282910392892
• Hunt, T. E., & Sari, M. (2019). An English version of the Mathematics Teaching Anxiety Scale. International Journal of Assessment Tools in Education, 6, 436-443. https://doi.org/10.21449/ijate.615640
• Hunt, T. E., Simms, V., Cahoon, A., & Muwonge, C. M. (2021). Socio-cognitive-affective barriers to mathematics education in developing nations. In W. Leal Filho., P. Gökçin Özuyar., A. Lange Salvia., A. Marisa Azul., L. Londero Brandli., & T. Wall (Eds), Encyclopaedia of the UN Sustainable Development Goals: Quality Education. Springer.
• Jackson, C. D., & Leffingwell, R. J. (1999). The role of instructors in creating math anxiety in students from kindergarten through college. Mathematics Teacher, 92, 583-586. Retrieved March 31, 2021, from https://www.jstor.org/stable/27971118
• Johnson-Wilder, S., & Lee, C. (2010). Mathematical resilience. Mathematics Teaching. 218, 38-41
• Kindermann, T. A., & Skinner, E. A. (2009). How do naturally existing peer groups shape children’s academic development during sixth grade? European Journal of Psychological Science, 3, 31-43.
• Klinger, C. M. (2006). Challenging negative attitudes, low self-efficacy beliefs, and math- anxiety in pre-tertiary adult learners. In M. Horne, & B. Marr (Ed.), Connecting voices in adult mathematics and numeracy: practitioners, researchers and learners. Proceedings of the Adults Learning Mathematics (ALM) 12th Annual International Conference, Melbourne, July, 2005 (pp. 164-171).
• Ma, X., & Xu, J. (2004). The causal ordering of mathematics anxiety and mathematics achievement: A longitudinal panel analysis. Journal of Adolescence, 27, 165-179. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.adolescence.2003.11.003
• Maloney, E., & Beilock, S. L. (2012). Math anxiety: Who has it, why it develops and how to guard against it. Trends in Cognitive Science, 16, 404-405. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tics.2012.06.008
• Maloney, E. M., Schaeffer, M. W., & Beilock, S. L. (2013). Mathematics anxiety and stereotype threat: Shared mechanisms, negative consequences and promising interventions. Research in Mathematics Education, 15, 115-128. https://doi.org/10.1080/14794802.2013.797744
• McCulloch-Vinson, B. (2001). A comparison of pre-service teachers’ mathematics anxiety before and after a methods class emphasizing manipulatives. Early Childhood Education Journal, 29(2), 89-94. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1012568711257
• Namkung, J. M., Peng, P., & Lin, X. (2019). The relation between mathematics anxiety and mathematics performance among school-aged students: A meta-analysis. Review of Educational Research, 89, 459-496. https://doi.org/10.3102%2F0034654319843494
• Nunez-Pena, M. I., Suarez-Pellicioni, M., Guilera, G., & Mercade-Carranza, C. (2013). A Spanish version of the short Mathematics Anxiety Rating Scale (sMARD). Learning and Individual Differences, 24, 204-210. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lindif.2012.12.009
• Plaisance, D. V. (2009). A teacher’s quick guide to understanding mathematics anxiety. Louisiana Association of Teachers of Mathematics Journal, 6 (1), 1-8.
• Plake, B. S., & Parker, C. S. (1982). The development and validation of a revised version of the mathematics anxiety rating scale. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 42, 551-557. https://doi.org/10.1177%2F001316448204200218
• Reid, K., Flowers, P., & Larkin, M. (2005). Interpretative phenomenological analysis: An overview and methodo-logical review. The Psychologist, 18, 20-23.
• Relich, J., Way, J., & Martin, A. (1994). Attitudes to teaching mathematics: Further development of a measurement instrument. Mathematics Research Journal, 6 (1), 56-69. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03217262
• Richardson, F. C., & Suinn, R. M. (1972). The Mathematics Anxiety Rating Scale. Journal of Counselling Psychology, 19, 551-554.
• Schofield, H. L. (1981). Teacher effects on cognitive and affective pupil outcomes in elementary school mathematics. Journal of Educational Psychology, 73, 462-571.
• Smith, J., Flowers, P., & Larkin, M. (2009). Interpretative phenomenological analysis. Sage Publications Inc. https://doi.org/10.1080/14780880903340091
• Smith, J. A., & Osborn, M. (2003) Interpretative phenomenological analysis. In J.A. Smith (Ed.), Qualitative Psychology: A Practical Guide to Research Methods. London: Sage Publications Inc.
• Suárez-Pellicioni, M., Núñez-Peña, M. I., & Colomé, À. (2016). Math anxiety: A review of its cognitive consequences, psychophysiological correlates, and brain bases. Cognitive, Affective, & Behavioral Neuroscience, 16(1), 3-22. http://doi.org/10.3758/s13415-015-0370-7
• Suinn, R. M., & Winston, E. H. (2003). The mathematics anxiety rating scale, a brief version: Psychometric data. Psychological Reports, 92, 167-173. https://doi.org/10.2466%2Fpr0.2003.92.1.167
• Swars, S., Daane, C., & Giesen, J. (2006). Mathematics anxiety and mathematics teacher efficacy: What is the relationship in elementary preservice teachers? School Science and Mathematics, 106(7), 306-315. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1949-8594.2006.tb17921.x
• Trujillo, K. M., & Hadfield, O. D. (1999). Tracing the roots of mathematics anxiety through in-depth interviews with preservice elementary teachers. College Student Journal, 33(2), 219-232.
• Tuffour, I. (2017). A critical overview of interpretative phenomenological analysis: a contemporary qualitative research approach. Journal of Healthcare Communications, 2(4), 52. https://doi.org/10.4172/2472-1654.100093
• Uusimaki, L., & Nason, R. (2004). Causes underlying pre-service teachers’ negative beliefs and anxieties about mathematics. Group for the Psychology of Mathematics, 4, 369-376.
• Wang, Z., Hart, S., Kovas, Y., Lukowski, S., Soden, B., & Thompson, L., Plomin, R., McLoughlin, G., Bartlett, C. W., Lyons, I. M., & Petrill, S. A. (2014). Who is afraid of math? Two sources of genetic variance for mathematical anxiety. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 55, 1056-1064. https://doi.org/10.1111/jcpp.12224
• Willig, C. (2013). Introducing qualitative research in psychology (3rd ed.). Maidenhead, England: Open University Press.
• Wood, J. V. (1989). Theory and research concerning social comparisons of personal attributes. Psychological Bulletin, 106, 231-248.
• Young, C., Wu, S., & Menon, V. (2012). The neurodevelopmental basis of math anxiety. Psychological Science, 23, 492-501. https://doi.org/10.1177%2F0956797611429134
• Zhang, J., Zhao, N., & Kong, Q. P. (2019). The relationship between math anxiety and math performance: A meta-analytic investigation. Frontiers in Psychology, 10, 1613. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2019.01613