Education Law

Math anxiety

BoardBuzz came across a recent article on Ars Technica about a new study which suggests that elementary school may be a breeding ground for math anxiety. Girls have long embraced the stereotype that they’re not supposed to be good at math. And according to the study they may be getting the idea from a surprising source?their female elementary school teachers. Yes, the study claims that female elementary teachers who display a high level of anxiety about math transmitted that anxiety to their female students:

Teachers with high math anxiety were shown to have a significant effect on the math achievement and stereotypes of their female students. Girls with anxious teachers scored lower on math achievement tests at the end of the year than girls with more confident teachers?the more anxious the teacher, the more likely girls were to confirm the stereotype that girls have less math ability when they took the year-end tests. Girls who agreed with the stereotype all had lower math achievement scores than girls who did not agree, as well as lower scores than boys in general, who remained immune to their teachers’ influence.

BoardBuzz isn’t quite sure what to make of this study. However, it does appear that in early elementary school, where the teachers are almost all female, teachers? math anxiety would carry consequences for girls? math achievement by influencing girls? beliefs about who is good at math. What do you think? Could female teachers be passing on their own math inadequacies to their female students?

Full post as published by BoardBuzz: NSBA's Daily Weblog on January 29, 2010 (boomark / email).