Students Attitudes Towards Mathematics Research Papers (original) (raw)

El objetivo principal de la investigación fue estudiar el nivel de actitud hacia la matemática de los padres y las madres de familia de estudiantes de la educación secundaria oficial diurna costarricense, analizando la existencia de diferencias por sexo, por nivel de estudio y rango de edad. La investigación es de tipo cuantitativa descriptiva-exploratoria. La muestra estuvo integrada por 1851 personas padres o madres de estudiantes de la educación secundaria pública, académica y diurna costarricense; el diseño muestral fue simple aleatorio estratificado, según la zona de ubicación (rural o urbana) y área geográfica (provincia) a la que pertenecía el estudiantado matriculado en el 2019. Asimismo, las técnicas estadísticas aplicadas fueron la t de Student y ANOVA de un factor para el estudio de las hipótesis de la investigación. Como resultado se infiere que existen diferencias entre hombres y mujeres en el nivel de actitud hacia la matemática, mostrando los primeros niveles superiores con tamaño del efecto bajo. Además, se detectaron diferencias entre las personas con educación primaria incompleta o educación secundaria incompleta con las que tienen educación universitaria completa, mostrando niveles mayores de actitud los últimos. También, se detectaron diferencias en la actitud hacia la matemática entre las personas con edades entre los 35 y los 50 años, con las de edades mayores, con tamaño del efecto bajo. Se concluye que un 75.6 % de las personas encuestadas manifestó niveles de actitud hacia la matemática altos, lo que se valora como un hallazgo positivo.

- by and +4
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- Mathematics Education, Costa Rica, Education (Mathematics), Secondary Education

Despite a focus on teaching mathematics through challenging, problem solving tasks, there has been limited research into student attitudes towards these learning experiences. To address this gap in the literature, we asked 52 Australian primary students who had recently experienced mathematics taught in this manner to convey their feelings about learning through problem solving. Adopting a qualitative, exploratory, research design, student participants completed a brief questionnaire,
and a sub-set also contributed to follow-up focus groups. Thematic analysis of the questionnaire data revealed that three-quarters of students reported unambiguously positive attitudes towards problem solving, most others were ambivalent, and no students expressed negative attitudes. Younger students (Year 3/4) were more likely to express positive attitudes than older students (Year 5/6) and boys more likely to express positive attitudes than girls. Positive attitudes arose from students enjoying learning through problem solving, the perception that it supported their learning, and students thriving on challenge. Followup focus groups also reinforced the power of working collaboratively, particularly the importance of learning through discussions with peers, and opportunities to explore authentic and purposeful tasks. The findings help explain why students frequently have positive reactions to learning mathematics through problem solving.

There have been a number of studies investigating how attitudes such as confidence and motivation affect students and their academic achievement. This study assessed the attitudes towards Mathematics and proficiency in Mathematics of Senior High School Students across different strands. The respondents of the study were 868 grade 11 senior high students of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM), Pre-baccalaureate Maritime (Maritime), Accountancy, Business and Management (ABM), Humanities and Social Sciences (HUMSS), and Technical Vocation and Livelihood (TVL) strands. It aimed to ascertain the selected SHS students' level of Mathematics proficiency and their attitudes towards Mathematics. The Attitudes' Toward Mathematics Inventory (ATMI) was used to measure and determine the students' attitudes in terms of value, enjoyment, motivation, and self-confidence. Mathematics proficiency was based on the core subject, General Mathematics, the content was functions and graph. The two variables were correlated across different strands. To gather the data an Attitude Towards Mathematics Inventory (ATMI) and a teacher-made test were used. ATMI scores indicated that they valued mathematics, but their scores for Self-Confidence, Enjoyment, and Motivation were somewhat negative in attitudes. As a whole, students' across strands showed a negative attitudes towards mathematics. The results indicated that there is a significant relationship between attitudes towards mathematics and proficiency in mathematics. These findings indicate that teacher educators should be aware of Senior High School students across different strands' attitudes and seek to improve them in order to positively influence students' proficiency in mathematics.

- by Adonis Cerbito
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- Mathematics, Applied Mathematics, Physics, Teaching and Learning

The study aimed to assess and find the relationship between the attitude of high school students towards mathematics and their level of achievement in the subject. It made use of the descriptive correlation design with a validated questionnaire and documentary analysis as its main data gathering tool. Gathered data were analyzed and interpreted using weighted mean, and Pearson r. The attitude towards mathematics as reflected by the responses of the students was described as positive. Moreover, the mathematics achievement of the students is approaching proficiency level. Results revealed that a student's attitude towards the subject is related to their performance in the subject. Studies related to the subject matter may be conducted to testify to the results of this current study. Additional variables may be included to enhance the scope.

The main purpose of the study was to establish the predictive validity of mathematics teachers’ attributes and attitude towards mathematics subject as determinants of the students’ mathematics performance among Bachelor of Secondary Education major in Mathematics students from selected Campuses of Polytechnic University of the Philippines. Findings of the study showed that teachers handling College Algebra, Number Theory, and Spherical Trigonometry subjects have outstanding teacher attributes. Likewise, teachers handling Advanced Algebra, Plane Trigonometry, Differential Calculus, and Mathematical Logic have very satisfactory ratings. In terms of attitude towards mathematics, students possess positive attitude towards all mathematics subjects covered in the study. In terms of mathematics performance, students have satisfactory performance in all mathematics subjects except in Advanced Algebra with a fair performance.It was revealed that none of the dimensions of mathematics teachers’ attributes and dimensions of attitudes towards mathematics significantly determined the performances of the students in College Algebra, Plane Trigonometry, Spherical Trigonometry, and Mathematical Logic. Furthermore, teachers’ personal attributes and enjoyment of mathematics were significant determinants of Advanced Algebra performance. Likewise, teachers’ personal attributes was revealed as a significant determinant of Plane Geometry performance. Lastly, self confidence with mathematics was a significant determinant of performances in Differential Calculus and Number Theory.

This project investigated the significant factors affecting college student performance with the use of
statistical techniques. The data for this project were collected from three major competitive private
schools in Alimosho local government at Lagos—Nigeria. Hence, this study aimed at using statistical techniques to find out the
significance factors affecting college student performance.
Using a random sample technique, 451 student grades (observations) were drawn/undertaken form three
consecutive years (2014-2016) including the total Number of classrooms, laboratories and teachers in
the school organization. Descriptive Analysis, logistics regression model, including walds’ test, pseudo, likelihood ratio and other deviance, Pearson’s chi-square for relationship between amenities and
overall performance of students, and ANOVA and post hoc test for difference in amenities and schools
were the statistical methods used. Two models were fitted to measure the relationship between the performance of students in Mathematics and English Language using the Logistic Regression approach...

The importance of Mathematics has been a large UK Government focus for some time now, with an ever increasing demand to raise results; not only for the UK to compete in the Global Common Market and be internationally competitive, but also for the benefits of students’ life skills and competence within a work environment. However negative attitudes have been found within students towards Mathematics, which in turn can cause disengagement and poor performance (Nardi & Steward, 2003). Mobile Technology – such as mobile phones or tablets – is a methodology being utilised by teachers within sessions to support connections between Mathematic concepts and real world problems, as well as increase positive attitudes towards Mathematics (Sawaya & Putnam, 2015).
This study examined whether the use of mobile technologies had an impact on attitudes towards mathematics, as well as students’ perceptions towards the mobile technology. This study aimed to achieve this through an extensive research on current literature and the implementation of practical research. A mixed-methods design was implemented examining the Micro, Meso and Macro allowing different levels of analysis. Participants were students from a UK Vocational College, enrolled on a study programme including either Functional Skills Mathematics of GCSE Mathematics, of a variety of ages yet mainly 16-19years (N= 84). Students initial attitudes to Mathematics were recorded, then students participated within four (GCSE) or three (FS) sessions using mobile technology.
This research supported literature about initial attitudes towards Mathematics not being positive, however this study found that attitudes were not as negative as expected. Students’ evaluation of the sessions using the mobile technology were in general positive, as well as in the majority increased over sessions (apart from GCSE session 4). With student choosing the positive adjectives of; ‘Fun’, ‘Useful’ and ‘New’ to describe the use of the mobile-tablets within the sessions. Themes from the student Focus groups found that satisfaction towards certain activities and using the mobile device were high as well as finding it useful to understand different mathematical concepts, however not all students found the device easy to use with some stating a pen and paper was easier to draw diagrams. This research produced a key finding that was not supported by the majority of previous literature as a change in attitude was found through paired-sample t-tests in the factors of Value, Enjoyment and Attitude to Learning Mathematics with Mobile Technology. Course difference in initial and post-test attitudes were also present, with more positive attitudes from those on a Functional Skills Mathematics course than those on a GCSE course.
The main conclusions drawn from this study were students’ have a positive perception towards using mobile-technology within their mathematics sessions, with signs of improvement in attitude after the use of mobile-technology within sessions. Some differences were found between FS and GCSE students. Further research is required to examine this difference, as the study was a small time frame with results differing from previous literature.

- by Rachel Upsall
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- Mathematics, Perception, Teaching and Learning, Education

This study developed an instrument that measures the attitude of Filipino high school students towards mathematics, with reliable predictors and factors. Using the responses of 300 high school students from Zamboanga Sibugay, the validity and reliability of the Mathematics Attitude Scale (MAS) was tested using Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) and reliability analyses. The EFA showed that four-factor structures of the instrument, regarding the mathematics attitude for high school students, explained 27.48% of the variance in the pattern of relationships among the items. The Average Variance Extracted (AVE), Composite Reliability, and Cronbach’s Alpha coefficients were reported. They proved that the extracted constructs have obtained and satisfied convergent validity. Thirty-three items remained in the final questionnaire after deleting the twenty-seven items with factor loadings of less than 0.4 (Students’ Perceived Motivation and Support in Learning Mathematics: twelve items; Students’ Perceived Anxiety in Learning Mathematics: ten items; Students’ Perceived Self-Efficacy in Learning Mathematics: six items; and Teachers and Parents’ Influences to Students in Learning Mathematics: five items). This study has confirmed the four-factor structure of the MAS. Educators and researchers can use the MAS to better understand the attitudes of Filipino high school students towards mathematics.

- by Starr Clyde Sebial and +1
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- Mathematics Education, Students Attitudes Towards Mathematics

Despite the widespread use of Social Learning Networks (SLNs), there is little research on the effectiveness of these sites in related literature. Therefore, there is a need for studies investigating but use of SLNs in educational environments and their effects on learners' academic achievements. In this study, the purpose was to investigate the effects of use of Edmodo, a leading SLN site, on students' performances and attitudes towards online learning according to certain variables. In line with this purpose, using the pretest-posttest method, an experimental study with a control group was carried out with 79 learners taking the courses of Special Teaching Methods in the department of Computer Education and Instructional Technologies in the Education Faculty of a university in Turkey. In addition to face-to-face courses given to the experimental group students, various activities related to the course (group works, individual assignments, discussions) were carried out under the guidance of the course teacher via Edmodo. As for the control group students, they carried out the activities in class environment without using Edmodo. The results revealed that students who used Edmodo were more successful than those who did not. Based on this result, it could be stated that Edmodo had positive contributions to learners' academic achievements.

This study probes students' beliefs about nature of mathematics, difficulty in learning mathematics sourcing from these and their influence on achievement in mathematics. Questionnaire survey on 458, 9 th standard students randomly selected from schools of Malappuram district elicited data on nature of school mathematics and difficulty arising out of it. Test on Achievement of Prerequisites in Mathematics on Basic operations, Rational numbers and exponents, Geometry, Algebra, and Daily Mathematics was conducted. Overall achievement in mathematics and achievement in its component areas are influenced more by difficulties arising from nature of content than teaching learning process and learning technique. Achievement in daily mathematics is influenced by difficulties arising out of teaching learning process. Findings implies that special nature of mathematics is to be considered in adapting teaching learning to reduce difficulties in learning it. National Curriculum Framework 2015 has envisioned the aim of mathematics education as to develop the child's resources to think and reason mathematically, to pursue assumptions to their logical conclusion and to handle abstraction. It includes a way of doing things, and ability and attitude to formulate and solve problems (NCF 2005). Even though mathematics has been given due importance in school curriculum, large number of children dislikes mathematics and felt it as the most difficult subject in schools. National achievement survey 2015 found that 48% of students in 10 th standard of Kerala were in 0-35% scores, 29 % students were in 36-50% scores and only 2% of students scored above 75% in Mathematics. ASER report 2014 also found dropping achievement in basic arithmetic skills of primary students. The studentdifficultyin learning and achieving in mathematics is attributed tomany factors. Papanastasiou (2000) identifies both internal factors like content of the test, quality of items, linguistic factors and external factors like environment of the learner to affect performance of the students in test situations. Curricular materials, gap between learner and subject matter, memory ability, attention span and understanding the language of mathematics are also cited (Sherman, Richardson & Yard, 2014) as major reasons for students falling below their expected level of mathematics achievement. One of the major categories of reason for students feeling difficulty to learn various subjects are related to the nature and characteristics of the content and method of respective subject (Gafoor & Sarabi, 2015a). Mathematics unlike other subjects has number of factors, which makes the subject peculiar in nature. Cumulative effect of these factors related to its nature makes mathematics difficult to learn. Belief about nature of mathematics has been identified as a major factor influencing mathematics learning. Number of studies has been focused on Students beliefs about nature of mathematics and its influence on different aspects of mathematics learning. Mathematical ability is significantly correlated with students' belief about importance of mathematics and belief about own ability in mathematicsand self-regulated learning (Suthar & Khooharo, 2013; Suthar, Tarmizi, Midi & Adam, 2010).Students' belief about mathematics influences

- by kunnathodi abdul gafoor and +1
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- Mathematics, Education, Mathematics Education, Educational Psychology

This paper explores how undergraduates’ conceptions of mathematics, approaches to learning and their
attitudes towards numeracy skills are related. The preliminary dataset was obtained using an online survey
completed by 174 self-selecting, volunteer undergraduates from four faculties at a post-1992 UK university.
Although the responding undergraduates were studying a variety of academic disciplines, all their degree
programmes incorporated some mathematical, numerical and/or statistical elements. A positive association
was observed between cohesive conceptions of mathematics and deep approaches to the learning of
mathematics and the development of numeracy skills. Students possessing cohesive conceptions also held
more positive attitudes towards mathematics. Variations due to gender, age, academic discipline (i.e. faculty
in which students were enrolled) and students’ highest pre-university mathematics (or -related) qualifications
are discussed.

Mathematics skills are key factors for success in business studies, and for access to business degrees. It is important, therefore, to understand the determinants of mathematics scores among business students. The aim of our study was to identify factors that can explain mathematics performance among a cohort of business school students in Norway. This paper used a linear regression to quantify statistical associations between mathematics performance and the following independent variables: gender, grade point average (GPA) from upper secondary school, background in mathematics education, Big Five personality traits, and attitudes towards mathematics (ATM). Two factorsmathematics background, and self-confidence in mathematicswere positively associated with performance, though the significant effect of mathematics background disappeared after controlling for ATM. Given the importance of mathematics for success 24 in business studies, we recommend that efforts are made to improve students' confidence in this topic.

- by ADONIS CERBITO
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- Mathematics, Applied Mathematics, Physics, Teaching and Learning

This empirical study explores factors influencing undergraduates’ self-evaluation of their numerical competence, using data from an online survey completed by 566 undergraduates from a diversity of academic disciplines, across all four faculties at a post-1992 UK university. Analysis of the data, which included correlation and multiple regression analyses, revealed that undergraduates exhibiting greater confidence in their mathematical and numeracy skills, as evidenced by their higher self-evaluation scores and their higher scores on the confidence sub-scale contributing to the measurement of attitude, possess more cohesive, rather than fragmented, conceptions of mathematics, and display more positive attitudes towards mathematics/numeracy. They also exhibit lower levels of mathematics anxiety. Students exhibiting greater confidence also tended to be those who were relatively young (i.e. 18–29 years), whose degree programmes provided them with opportunities to practise and further develop their numeracy skills, and who possessed higher pre-university mathematics qualifications. The multiple regression analysis revealed two positive predictors (overall attitude towards mathematics/numeracy and possession of a higher pre-university mathematics qualification) and five negative predictors (mathematics anxiety, lack of opportunity to practise/develop numeracy skills, being a more mature student, being enrolled in Health and Social Care compared with Science and Technology, and possessing no formal mathematics/numeracy qualification compared with a General Certificate of Secondary Education or equivalent qualification) accounted for approximately 64% of the variation in students’ perceptions of their numerical competence. Although the results initially suggested that male students were significantly more confident than females, one compounding variable was almost certainly the students’ highest pre-university mathematics or numeracy qualification, since a higher percentage of males (24%) compared to females (15%) possessed an Advanced Subsidiary or A2 qualification (or equivalent) in mathematics. Of particular concern is the fact that undergraduates based in Health and Social Care expressed significantly less confidence in their numeracy skills than students from any of the other three faculties.

- by Jaime Fonseca
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- Students Attitudes Towards Mathematics

This study of freshman engineering students enrolled at Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University (IAU) in Saudi Arabia investigated the relationship between the students’ attitudes and their demographic characteristics. Specifically, the study assessed the relationship between students’ demographic characteristics and how the characteristics related to five variables associated with attitudes toward mathematics: attitude toward success in mathematics, confidence in learning mathematics, mathematics anxiety, awareness of the usefulness of mathematics, and effectance motivation in mathematics. A total number of 157 male students enrolled in Calculus 1 participated in the survey. Findings revealed that the freshman engineering students had positive attitudes toward mathematics; furthermore, the results indicated that there are positive relationships between the fathers’ career types and all the five attitudes of the students toward mathematics. Also, the mothers’ career types and geographical regions had a positive relationship with students’ confidence in learning mathematics. In contrast, the findings indicated that there are a negative relationship between mothers’ educational levels and two of the students’ attitudes (confidence in learning mathematics and mathematics anxiety). Similarly, students’ attitudes toward success in mathematics were also impacted by their nationalities.
Interviews with 26 participants helped the researcher to discover students’ ideas about the survey's questions in greater depth. The results of the interview indicate that the freshman engineering students’ attitudes are more affected by their fathers and their teachers. The reasons that form students’ attitudes toward mathematics can be divided into two parts: internal and external. The internal reasons result from the students themselves, which includes practice and preparation, assessments and grades, English language effect, time management, pride in themselves, competition with their colleagues, weak mathematical foundation, consideration of mathematics as a favorite subject, pressure of other courses, awareness of the relationship between mathematics in their daily lives and mathematics within other scientific subjects, awareness of the relationship between mathematics and their engineering major, and awareness of the benefit of mathematics in their future careers. The external reasons include teachers’ characteristics, parental support, and respect from their fathers.

Bu çalışma Eğitim Fakültesi Sınıf Öğretmenliği Bölümü birinci sınıfta öğrenim gören üniversite öğrencilerinin matematiğe yönelik tutumları ile geometriye yönelik tutumları arasındaki ilişkiyi incelemek amacıyla gerçekleştirilmiştir. Betimsel bir yaklaşımla yürütülen bu araştırma kapsamında öğrencilerin matematiğe yönelik tutumları ile geometriye yönelik tutumları değişkenler olarak kabul edilmiş ve bu değişkenler arasındaki ilişki incelendiği için araştırmanın modeli ilişkisel tarama olarak belirlenmiştir. Araştırmanın çalışma grubunda Manisa Celal Bayar Üniversitesi Sınıf Öğretmenliği Lisans Programı birinci sınıfında öğrenim gören 96 öğrenci yer almaktadır. Çalışmada veri toplamak için araç olarak matematik tutum ölçeği ve geometri tutum ölçeği kullanılmıştır. Verilerin analizinde betimsel istatistikler ve basit korelasyon analizi kullanılmıştır. Elde edilen bulgular sınıf öğretmeni adaylarının geometriye yönelik tutumlarının orta düzeyde olduğunu matematiğe yönelik ise olumlu tutumlara sahip olduklarına işaret etmektedir. Kadın katılımcıların geometri tutum puanlarının, erkek katılımcıların ise matematik tutum puanlarının daha yüksek olduğu görülmektedir. Matematik tutum puanları ile geometri tutum puanları arasında orta düzeyde ve pozitif yönlü bir korelasyon olduğu söylenebilir. Bu çalışmanın sonuçlarına bağlı olarak, sınıf öğretmen adaylarının almış oldukları Temel Matematik ve Matematik Öğretimi derslerinde kullanılan öğretim yöntem ve tekniklerinin gözden geçirilmesi, bu derslerdeki geometri konularının ağırlıklarının artırılması, matematik derslerinin saatlerinin artırılması, Sınıf Öğretmenliği Programına zorunlu Geometri dersinin eklenmesi önerilmektedir.

This paper explores how undergraduates' mathematics anxiety influences their attitudes towards the development of numeracy skills and perceptions of their competence in the latter. The preliminary data presented were obtained using an online survey, which was completed by 174 undergraduates, from four faculties at the University of Central Lancashire, UK. Although respondents were studying a variety of academic subjects, all their degree programmes incorporated some mathematical, numerical and/or statistical elements. Correlation analyses indicated that undergraduates revealing high levels of maths anxiety tended to hold negative attitudes towards the development of numeracy skills. They lacked confidence in and the motivation to develop numeracy skills, and expressed little enjoyment of numeracy. High levels of maths anxiety and negative attitudes towards developing numeracy skills were also linked with low levels of competency in terms of students' self-evaluation of their numeracy skills. Students possessing higher pre-university mathematics qualifications tended to exhibit lower levels of maths anxiety and greater confidence, motivation, enjoyment and competence. Younger students also expressed more confidence and competence. An exploration of the effects of gender revealed that male students exhibited lower levels of maths anxiety and higher levels of confidence, enjoyment, and perceptions of competency in numeracy than female students, even though no significant differences were found between male and female students in terms of their pre-university mathematics (related) qualifications. Students' maths anxiety, confidence, motivation and self-evaluated numerical competence varied with academic discipline (i.e. faculty).

Students' attitudes toward mathematics play a key role in their academic achievements. Still, concerns regarding the low grades in mathematics tests of engineering students have raised questions about the reasons for their poor performance. Prior research has mentioned the impact of engineering students' attitudes on their grades. Few studies have attempted to explore the factors that influence and form engineering students' attitudes toward mathematics. The current study aims to investigate the factors that affect freshman engineering students' attitudes toward mathematics using a qualitative research design. Interviews with 26 participants enrolled at Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University (IAU) in Saudi Arabia provided insight into the students' experiences through survey questions. Thematic content analysis was used in this study to analyze the interviews. The results of the interview indicate that the freshman engineering students' attitudes are most affected by their fathers and their teachers. The causes that form students' attitudes toward mathematics can be divided into two parts: internal and external. The internal causes result from the students themselves, which include practice and preparation, assessments and grades, effect of English proficiency, and time management. The external causes include teachers' characteristics and parental support.

It is recognized that an increasing number of students are deciding not to study mathematics beyond minimum secondary school requirements and that many more girls than boys make this decision. A set of variables not only affects the amount of effort one is willing to employ to learn mathematics, but also influence the election of additional mathematics courses beyond the basic requirements. This paper reports the results of the analysis of pilot study data gained from a survey using a Bangla translated version of the Fennema-Sherman Mathematics Attitude Scales (FSMAS). The main purpose of the survey was to check the reliability of using Bangla translated version of FSMAS in the rural Bangladeshi context and analyze the preliminary data to observe the pattern of differences in attitudes to mathematics among different groups.

Computer Education and Instructional Technology (CEIT) Departments train computer teachers to fill gap of computer instructor in all grades of schools in Turkey. Additionally graduates can also work as instructional technologist or software developer. The curriculum of CEIT departments includes mathematics courses.
The aim of this study is to identify attitudes of undergraduate students at CEIT departments towards math. In order to investigate the research question quantitative methods was used. Specifically survey research was preferred. Mathematics Attitude Questionnaire (MAQ) that was developed by Duatepe and Çilesiz (1999) was used and the questionnaire includes 38 items. The instrument was conducted with 122 undergraduate students from CEIT departments of four different universities in Turkey in the spring semester of 2010- 2011. Data were analyzed through independent samples t-test and one-way ANOVA by means of PASW Statistics. In conclusion, some differences were found in terms of math attitudes of CEIT’s students.

Motivation for learning is important for positive learning outcomes as well as for measured achievement levels. When students come to our classes, they bring with them learning histories in which we as individual teachers, most likely, did not have an input. Our students do not only bring with them different levels of prerequisite leanings but also different levels of affect for what they will be learning. If we leave their final learning at the mercy of these entry characteristics, a test given the first day before the course will have almost isomorphic results with their achievement levels on the last day. The ones who had ‘it’ on the first day will be the ones who in the future will also have ‘it’, not too different from what the present situation is all over the world. These circumstances will tend to be the case ad infinitum, unless of course, we want to change the situation. This research clearly shows that effective instructional methodologies coupled with cooperative peer interactions not only have an impact on achievement but also on positive attitudes toward one’s learning.

The purpose of this study is to find out if there is any gender difference in attitudes to
mathematics among students at the Faculty of Economics and Management, NTNU. More
than 200 students from the three departments: (1) Industrial Economics and Technology
Management, (2) Economics and (3) Business school were questioned about their attitudes
towards mathematics.
Using factor analysis, an instrument for measuring attitudes towards mathematics, was
constructed. The method chosen was pairwise comparisons using an independent samples ttest.
Research on the gender gap is mixed. Some studies show a sex difference when it
comes to attitude to mathematics, while others do not find any significant gap between male
and female students.
Norway is one of the highest-ranking countries in terms of overall gender equality, and
female students outperform their male peers at upper secondary school. Nevertheless, women
are under-represented in fields like science, technology, engineering and mathematics. This is
a gender equality paradox.
About 50 per cent of the students at the Faculty of Economics and Management are
females. The data suggest there is a significant gender difference in attitudes towards
mathematics among the students. The females have substantially lower values in terms of selfconfidence, enjoyment and value in mathematics. The students can choose between practical
and theoretical mathematics at upper secondary school, but even if we adjust for that, there is
still a significant gender gap. This finding can explain why female students tend to select less
quantitative fields and business courses that require fewer mathematical skills.

The purpose of the present study was to investigate management students' attitudes towards mathematics by comparing two groups. The students in Group 1 had prior professional education (in healthcare, education, and so on) and were taking a master's degree in management. The students in Group 2 were ordinary business and economics students. The sample was taken from different universities in Norway. The chosen methods were pairwise companionship and binary logistic regression. The results showed a substantial difference in attitudes towards mathematics between the two groups, especially in self-confidence. Views on the value of mathematics also differed. The impact of gender was minor in Group 1 and non-existent in Group 2. Attitudes towards mathematics differed between the male and female business and economics students.

This study was conducted to investigate the effectiveness of a treatment designed to improve college algebra students’ attitudes toward mathematics. Keller’s ARCS motivational design model was used as a guiding framework for the development of a motivational video, which was delivered online. The application of motivational design to improve mathematics attitudes in an online environment extends the use of motivational design. A pretest-posttest control group design was used to test the effectiveness of the treatment. The participants in this study were 43 students enrolled in a college algebra course offered at a large state university in the mid-Atlantic region of the United States. Statistically significant results were observed for improved attitudes toward mathematics.

- by Charles Hodges
- •
- Mathematics, Algebra, Students Attitudes Towards Mathematics, Students Attitudes

In Bangladesh, children of the science stream education at secondary level may choose to study ‘Higher Mathematics’ as an optional course among the other subjects such as Agricultural Education, ICT and Career Education and Biology. This paper reports a preliminary analysis of six focus group discussions (FGDs) with some children of grades 9 and 10 across three rural secondary madrasas (Islamic schools) in Bangladesh. The analysis suggests that shortage of good higher math teachers and a private tuition centered math education have negative effects on children’s participation in an optional course in Higher Mathematics.

The study investigated educational values of mathematics in relation to gender and attitudes toward mathematics among 480 Nigerian preservice mathematics teachers from four universities in Southwest, Nigeria using the quantitative research method within the blueprint of the descriptive survey design. Data collected were analysed using the descriptive statistics of frequency, percentage, mean, and standard deviation and inferential statistics of independent samples t-test, Pearson moment correlation, and multiple regression analysis. Findings revealed that preservice mathematics teachers showed high level of educational value of mathematics. There were significant possible correlations among preservice mathematics teachers‟ practical value, aesthetic value, cultural value, social value, moral value, disciplinary value, recreational value, and attitudes toward mathematics. While gender differences in some dimensions of educational value of mathematics (practical value, disciplinary value, social value, and cultural value) are no longer important and are declining there are subtle gender differences in attitudes toward mathematics and educational values of mathematics in this study. In addition, 73.7% of the variance in preservice teachers‟ attitudes toward mathematics was accounted for by the eight predictor variables (gender, practical or utilitarian value, disciplinary value, cultural value, social value, moral value, aesthetic value and recreational value) taken together. Based on this baseline study, it was thus, recommended that future studies in Nigeria should investigate the educational value of mathematics of in-service teachers with varied ethnicity and socio-economic background so as to generalise the results of this study.

The key factor which influences students' performance in mathematics, is the students‟ attitude towards mathematics. It is believed that most of the students‟ attitude towards mathematics is influenced from the interactions within the home environment. Hence, this study explores the home environment factors which affect students‟ attitudes towards mathematics and the relationship between mathematics and physics achievements of Australian eighth grade students in TIMSS 2011. The study utilized quantitative method for, IBM SPSS21 was run to compute the parametric and nonparametric analysis. 7556 eighth grade students participated in the TMISS 2011 survey from Australia. It was highlighted from the findings that parent engagement in the child, education, influences the child attitude towards mathematics. The mathematics achievement was strongly correlated with physics achievement and major contribution to physics achievement was from the mathematics. Future research could investigate other home environment factors influencing mathematics performance, as well as, contribution of mathematics towards other subjects

As in many countries, early childhood teachers introduce mathematics content in kindergartens in Turkey. Therefore, early childhood teachers should master a certain level of mathematics knowledge and are offered a mathematics methods course in faculties of education. Teacher training programs are also expected to improve early childhood preservice teachers (PSTs) attitudes towards mathematics (ATM). In this context, it seems important to investigate whether and how much early childhood PSTs' attitude towards mathematics changed throughout their university lives. Our study was conducted with a sampling of 43 participants studying at a state university in the north of Turkey, in the Black Sea Region. The data was collected from early childhood PSTs using the same attitude scale in their 1st and 3rd years of study. The quantitative analysis of the data in SPSS 22 using t-test for paired samples demonstrated that the early childhood PSTs' attitudes towards mathematics have improved from the 1st to the 3rd year. In our sampling, one-way ANOVA and t-test for independent samples revealed that the ATM of the early childhood PSTs were not associated with variables such as gender, the type of completed high school, total family income, and parents' level of education. Based on the findings, it was concluded that the mathematics methods course offered to early childhood PSTs in their 2nd year might be effective in improving the attitudes towards mathematics.

- by Vicki Tariq and +1
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- Higher Education, Science and Technology, Secondary Education, Numeracy
- by Adeojo Odunayo
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- Students Attitudes Towards Mathematics

- by Emin Aydin
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- Psychology, Interaction, Competition, Cooperative Learning