Addressing Maths Anxiety

Maths can be tough to make engaging. While subjects like English, History, and Geography can inspire the imagination and be easily translated into real-world examples and projects, you can often struggle to achieve the same with maths.

However, by understanding the underlying reasons why students disengage, you can create and implement strategies to help them connect with and become engaged in maths.

Understanding the Reasons for Disconnect

While it’s tempting to simply say ‘maths is hard’, there are numerous factors that contribute to the disconnect.

These are the most prominent reasons:

Maths Anxiety

Maths Anxiety affects a significant number of students and can lead to a complete shutdown during lessons.

Reasons for maths anxiety include:

1. Parental pressure: Students don’t want to disappoint their parents, leading to a continual cycle of stress.
2. Parents have maths anxiety: Parents who tell their children that ‘they hated maths’ or ‘they never understood it’ can drastically shift their children’s perspectives on the subject.
3. Your pressure: Some of you may overreach in your desire for a student to succeed.
4. Societal pressure: If students believe that in order to have a fulfilling, secure future, they need to be good at maths, they can begin to dread performing poorly.

Barriers to Engagement

There are two types of barriers for student engagement in maths: external and internal.

Some examples of each are:

External

1. Limited access to resources: A lack of appropriate materials or tools can make it difficult for students to effectively engage with maths concepts.
2. Inadequate parental support: Without encouragement or help at home, students might struggle to find motivation or understand maths tasks.
3. Overcrowded classrooms: Large class sizes can result in less individual attention, making it challenging for students to stay engaged.

Internal

1. Lack of confidence: Students who doubt their abilities may hesitate to participate or invest effort in learning maths.
2. Negative self-perception: Believing that they are “just not good at maths” can deter students from engaging in the subject matter.
3. Difficulty in understanding concepts: Struggling to grasp foundational ideas can lead to frustration and eventual disengagement from maths lessons.

Grade Focused vs Enjoying the Learning Journey

When students are only dedicated to getting the highest scores on their assessments, it doesn’t allow for the enjoyment of discovery.

In practice, it looks something like this:

1. Superficial understanding of concepts: The emphasis is on rote memorisation rather than deep understanding and comprehension.
2. Task-oriented: Students aim to complete work and move on, instead of practising to gain mastery.
3. Fixed mindset development: Students focus on proving their abilities through grades rather than embracing challenges as opportunities for growth.

Strategies for Engagement

Addressing disconnect involves focusing on one goal: making maths meaningful. Here are a few key strategies to deliver that meaning to students:

Differentiated Learning Approaches

Differentiated learning involves tailoring your teaching methods to accommodate different learning styles and abilities. This approach ensures that all students can engage with the material at their own pace and level.

• Assess student needs through regular feedback and adjust your lesson plans accordingly.
• Incorporate a variety of teaching methods, such as visual aids, hands-on activities, and discussions, to cater to diverse learners.
• Offer choices in assignments to allow students to explore concepts in ways that interest them.

Emphasising Real-World Applications

Connecting maths to the real world helps students see its relevance and applicability.

Here are a few examples you can try with your class:

1. Budget analysis: Have students create a personal or event budget to learn financial literacy and practical arithmetic.
2. Cooking measurements: Use recipes to teach fractions and ratios as students convert ingredient quantities.
3. Sports statistics: Analyse player statistics to introduce probability and data interpretation in a relatable context.
4. Environmental data tracking: Monitor local or global changes, such as weather patterns, to apply maths skills in real-world scenarios.
5. Home construction projects: Design simple structures to explore geometry and spatial reasoning.

Celebrating Small Wins and Progress

Recognising and celebrating small achievements show students they should focus on progress over perfection.

1. Host a ‘Math Star’ of the Week ceremony: Celebrate a student each week who has shown significant effort or improvement, highlighting their journey rather than just their results.
2. Create a ‘victory wall’ in the classroom: Encourage students to post sticky notes with their small successes, creating a visual representation of collective achievements.
3. Introduce ‘Shout-out Fridays’: Dedicate time each week for students to acknowledge their peers’ hard work or breakthroughs, promoting a culture of mutual encouragement.
4. Initiate a ‘Progress Tracker’ chart: Allow students to mark their progress in specific areas, visibly tracking improvement and celebrating each step forward.
5. Incorporate a ‘Goal Achievement’ badge system: Award badges for achieving personal milestones, focusing on effort and perseverance as well as correct answers.

Encouraging Positive Mindsets

Cultivating a positive mindset towards maths is about shifting feelings of anxiety to feelings of excitement.

Here are a few examples of how you can achieve this:

1. Teach growth mindset principles: Emphasise effort and persistence over innate ability to help students develop a resilient approach to learning maths.
2. Utilise affirmations and positive reinforcement: Build students’ confidence in their maths abilities by regularly acknowledging their progress and achievements.
3. Encourage problem-solving as a challenge: Present maths problems as exciting challenges to foster curiosity and eagerness to find solutions.
4. Create a supportive classroom environment: Establish an atmosphere where mistakes are viewed as learning opportunities, encouraging risk-taking and experimentation.
5. Share success stories: Highlight examples of individuals who have overcome maths difficulties, illustrating the potential for growth and success through perseverance.

Individualised Instruction Methods

Individualised instruction caters to the unique needs of each student, allowing for personalised learning experiences that can improve numeracy.

1. Conduct one-on-one sessions: Address specific challenges and provide tailored support.
2. Use adaptive learning technologies: Adjust to students’ skill levels, offering customised practice and feedback.
3. Create personalised learning plans: Tailor content and pace to individual student needs.
4. Incorporate student feedback: Regularly use feedback to refine and adapt your instruction.
5. Monitor progress closely: Track individual achievements to adjust your pedagogical approaches accordingly.

Actionable Assessment Techniques

Actionable assessments provide valuable insights into students’ understanding and progress, helping you tailor your instruction accordingly.

1. Use formative assessments: Quizzes and reflections gauge student comprehension regularly.
2. Implement self-assessment tools: Enable students to reflect on their own learning and identify areas for improvement.
3. Design portfolio assessments: Encourage students to compile work showcasing their learning journey.
4. Provide regular feedback: Offer constructive feedback based on assessment outcomes.
5. Conduct peer assessments: Facilitate student interaction and shared learning insights.

Purposeful Practice Exercises

Purposeful practice involves targeted exercises designed to reinforce maths skills and concepts. This approach helps solidify understanding and improve proficiency.

1. Develop customised practice tasks: Focus on specific skills needing reinforcement.
2. Encourage regular practice sessions: Integrate maths games and activities to maintain student engagement.
3. Incorporate interactive exercises: Use technology to create dynamic and engaging practice opportunities.
4. Set incremental learning goals: Help students achieve mastery step-by-step through practice.
5. Analyse practice results: Use data from practices to pinpoint areas for further development.

Implementing Long-Term Solutions

For lasting engagement and improvement in maths, you need to implement strategies that foster sustained interest and skill development. This section discusses long-term solutions for maths education.

Integrating Technology in Maths Instruction

Technology offers innovative ways to engage students and enhance maths instruction. Integrating digital tools can make learning more interactive and accessible.

1. Utilise educational apps and platforms: Offer interactive lessons and practice exercises.
2. Encourage the use of online resources: Provide additional practice and exploration of maths topics.
3. Implement virtual classrooms: Facilitate remote learning opportunities for diverse learner groups.
4. Apply gamification strategies: Introduce elements that make learning enjoyable and motivating.
5. Utilise data analytics: Track learning patterns and outcomes through educational technologies.

Continuous Professional Development

For you, continuous learning and development is crucial for staying updated with best practices in maths instruction.

1. Engage in professional development workshops: Learn new teaching techniques and methodologies.
2. Participate in educator communities: Share insights and resources with your peers.
3. Attend professional conferences: Gain exposure to trends and innovations in maths education.
4. Pursue advanced certifications: Deepen subject mastery and instructional skills.
5. Reflect on teaching practice: Continually evaluate and refine your personal teaching strategies.

Collaborating with Parents and Community

Building strong partnerships with parents and the community can enhance maths education and student support.

1. Organise parent workshops: Provide strategies for supporting maths learning at home.
2. Engage with the community through maths-related events: Showcase the importance of numeracy in everyday life.
3. Create resource-sharing platforms: Facilitate access to learning materials for parents and guardians.
4. Involve local experts: Bring in professionals to demonstrate real-world applications of maths.
5. Establish communication channels: Maintain open dialogue between you, parents, and students.

Conclusion

Numeracy is a critical skill for all students to master. Whilst there are many strategies available to boost engagement with Mathematics, leveraging technology to build and support personalised learning journeys is the best long term way to drive engagement at scale. The Education Perfect offering supports Mathematics teachers in delivering a personalised learning journey for every student. 

To read how EP is built for impact and supports the full teaching and learning cycle click here.