We all have must have dislike from to studying a particular as kids, which we don’t like at all. Disliking History, and becoming bored with English is something most people could find relatable dealing in childhood. However, there is one such subject most people fear as kids and the anxiousness still prevails in adulthood. That one subject is ‘Math’! Yes. mathematics is something many people seem to struggle with in childhood, causing bad grades because it and running your results is so common a thing. The name itself is a rollercoaster of fear and extreme anxiety. Despite that math is everywhere in our life, it is almost in every field of abject and is used in avert aspects of life. Coming across maths in every life sometimes pulls a person back to their childhood struggle.
So why does it happen that you look at the numbers and just go blank, why does it get so difficult to do maths?
Let us learn something about math anxiety!
Defining Math Anxiety:
Math anxiety is defined as excessive worry or a strong sense of fear when solving math problems. Either taking a test or even thinking about numbers, one gets extremely anxious with math. There can be physical symptoms of math anxiety such as a racing heartbeat, sweating, trembling hands, a feeling of nausea, etc. It’s kind of similar to the fight or flight response of the body when feels a sense of danger from something. Math anxiety is not limited to children only, it can premia; on a person in adulthood also, besides that, there is no age group, gender, profession, etc.
Causes of Math Anxiety:
1. Negative Experiences:
A common cause for math anxiety could be past experiences related to math. Having a negative price such as failing in math test or struggling in learning a particular topic could create a cycle of self-doubting oneself.
2. Pressure to Perform:
High expectations from parents and teachers to perform well in tests and exams could be the reason behind math anxiety. The immense pressure to do well in all subjects, especially math could become a reason for the resulting fear from it.
3. Lack of Confidence:
A lack of confidence to do well in subjects like science or math could create a lack of confidence among children. Parents often think that their child could o well in technical subjects which made a child doubt their ability as well. This is common to find among teenagers who often fear to take opt for subjects like maths and science due to fear of failure developing since childhood.
4. Inability to deal with the complexity:
It can show in children since elementary school, it can also be found around middle school, especially the math is getting more complex with classes. The increasing difficulty could cause them to struggle to understand the numbers, formulas, and changes.
What Are The Negative Effects Of Math Anxiety?
1. Painful experience:
The study has shown that facing math anxiety is a painful experience for a child that could last into adulthood. A brain scan conducted in a stud has shown that when solving problems brain tends to show activity. The activity occurs in certain regions of the brain that deals with detecting threat and painful experiences.
2. Career Opportunities:
People having high math anxiety can end up having it up to adulthood and are less likely to finish graduation or opt for subjects in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) as their career options. It limits their opportunity to pursue a career in this exciting domain.
3. Self-esteem:
It is obvious that prolonged fear and anxiety from any object cause a long-lasting impact on the mind. Math anxiety tends to cause low self-esteem in a person, and a lack of confidence in solving a problem could result in a negative self-image. It can hinder a person’s growth in life to a great extent.
4. Generating stereotype:
It is a common belief that math anxiety is more prevalent among girls than women. Stereotyping children and women in such matters stem to harm their self-confidence. It further causes self-doubt in a person, resulting in math anxiety among girls due to the extent of the belief that they won’t perform well in them.
Overcoming Math Anxiety
1. Positive Mindset:
Instead of painting math in a bad light and scaring people away because of difficulty we could cultivate a positive mindset towards math. We should it as a subject of great importance in life, only when can promote confidence in people’s ability
2. Small learning and encouragement:
People tend to burden a lot of complex concepts with children at the same time. This confuses them and they end up not learning about anything. Instead, the math should be broken down into small steps and concepts at a time that is comprehended by a child. One should encourage children at every step of learning and guide them in mistakes instead of scolding them.
3. Reducing Pressure:
The need for the hours is to stop putting so much emphasis on good grades. Having good grades does not only determine success in life. Parents and education systems need to provide relief by reducing pressure on kids.
4 Seek Support:
One should always seek support from teachers, parents, and mental health professionals in case the anxiety is creating difficulties in life.
It is quite a common experience that kids have to go through. However, individuals of all ages, regardless of gender or ethnic stereotype, can be affected by math anxiety. By understanding the causes and root of anxiety we can develop ways to deal with this in children at an early age. We can use set the mindset that every individual is unique in their way, people have different interests, and it’s not necessary that everyone has to shine in every area of expertise. With the right approach and morale boosting of children at a young age, one can easily deal with it.
