Math anxiety is created when formulas are taught without understanding or fundamentals are skipped. Teaching that emphasizes regularities, anchors, and graded progression builds students' confidence and competence.
Mathematics is a language - it forms a logical basis for the natural and exact sciences, is important for technological professions, and provides practical tools for life. AlthoughMathematics studies Develops analytical ability, improves memory and encourages creativity, even for those who do not intend to pursue science, many students shy away from the subject. Studies show that "math anxiety" is often caused when learning is based on memorization rather than understanding.
Learning math by rote
You know that situation where you're on a math test and your brain suddenly gets stuck? You know you've seen this type of question before, you've memorized the formula, you've practiced the steps, but now, under pressure, everything just disappears. Why does this happen?
Our brains are not designed to store vast amounts of disconnected information over time. Rote can be used to remember unstructured, randomly organized things, like phone numbers or social security numbers, but not to understand the patterns that make up math and make it work. When a student learns by rote, weak neural connections are built, and the connections break easily under stress or when the student encounters a slightly different or unfamiliar version of a problem.
Understanding of logical patterns and action structure
The first thing we learn in math is counting. We learn the numbers from zero to nine, the relationship between them, and then we understand the place value pattern: ones, tens, hundreds, etc. Once the pattern is clear and understandable, there is no limit to the number of numbers and values that can be created with the numbers. Therefore, in math classes, students are not asked to memorize numbers from one hundred to two hundred, and then from two hundred to a million. A student knows that the next number after 1938 is 1939 not because he memorized the numbers, but because he understood the place value pattern. A student who understands the regularity between the numbers on the multiplication table does not need to learn it by heart, he uses anchors – 10 times 8 is eighty, 9 times 8 is 8 one less, and 5 times 8 is half of an eighty.
Memorization is pointless once you understand the pattern, and this idea applies to all mathematics – algebra, trigonometry, calculus, etc. Learning based on understanding creates stable neural connections that form the basis for further study and makes mathematics useful and interesting.
Step by step – no shortcuts
Every topic studied in mathematics is based on an understanding of the topics studied before it, each stage serves as a basis for the next stage. Math anxiety is created when an understanding of a stage is not established or is skipped. Prof. Aharoni, author of the book "Calculus for Parents," explains: "Math anxiety is created when you are asked to build the next floor on top of a missing floor. History is not built floor on top of floor... But in mathematics, when you don't have the basic tools, it seems like Chinese to you. Mathematics must be taught in the correct order, from easy to difficult and from the tangible to the abstract."
It is important to practice a new topic until it "sits well" and can serve as a basis for the next topic.
For teachers and parents
Learning math correctly not only improves achievement, but also strengthens a sense of competence. A student who understands each step feels in control and confident and approaches new challenges with curiosity rather than fear. Understanding is the effective and correct way to use formulas and patterns, and students love math when they understand.
If we succeed in changing the way mathematics is taught, we can ensure that more students will enjoy and persist in studying the subject, and more importantly, will acquire skills that will allow them to integrate and contribute to important fields in science and technology.
The article was written in collaboration with the iQute Institute – preparation for gifted tests, specialized schools and programs for talented youth in mathematics.
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Sources
Gray, E., & Tall, D. (1994). Duality, Ambiguity, and Flexibility: A "Perceptual" View of Simple Arithmetic.
Journal for Research in Mathematics Education, 25 (2), 116–140.
Feikes, D. & Schwingendorf, K. (2008). The Importance of Compression in Children's Learning of Mathematics and Teacher's Learning to Teach Mathematics. Mediterranean Journal for Research in Mathematics Education, 7 (2).
Boaler, J. & Zoido, P. (in press). The Impact of Mathematics Learning Strategies upon Achievement: A Close Analysis of PISA Data.
Fosnot, C.T. & Dolk, M. (2001). Young Mathematicians at Work: Constructing Multiplication and Division.
