Factors that cause students to develop math anxiety and strategies to diminish

Abstract

This research aimed  to determine the factors that cause elementary school students to feel fear and anxiety about mathematics  and to identify the strategies that the teachers can use to reduce and eliminate these factors. For this purpose, a case study method based on qualitative approach was used in the study. Researchers created an online  questionnaire and  collected the  data from  randomly selected   65  classroom teachers working in various  primary schools of Northern Cyprus in the 2019-2020 Academic Year. The questionnaire was finalized in line with the literature search, feedback from the field experts and the pilot study to ensure the reliability of the study. In the first part of the questionnaire, there are questions to determine the demographic features of the participants. In the second part, there are  questions to determine the opinions of the teachers about the factors that may cause students to develop  'fear and anxiety towards mathematics (student, teacher, parent, and other factors). The  third part of the questionnaire comprises a question to identify the strategies that the teachers use to reduce and eliminate the factors that cause anxiety development towards maths. The study is thought to contribute to the classroom teachers and the literature as it is a research aimed at identifying the factors that prevent effective mathematics teaching and the data will help teachers rethink and redesign the math courses based on data obtained.

Key words: Anxiety, Effective Teaching, Teachers, Mathematics, Primary School, Total Quality Management