Now a days there
are a lot more students who are becoming overwhelmed with mathophobia.
Mathophobia is when a student does not do their math homework, tends to skip
their math classes, freezes if they are asked a question during class, putting
off doing any work for the class, or they will say that they cannot do math. Some
students especially at a younger grade level will try to avoid doing math by
saying that they need to go to the nurse because they need ice for something
that is bothering them. They may also start to play with strings that they have
on their shirts that way they no longer are paying attention to what is going
on. Older students will have a different way of acting when it comes to
mathophoblia. What does not help older students who have mathophobia is having
a cell phone on them all the time. If they even have a simple problem they need
to use the calculator on their phones.
At my job most
of the people that I work with cannot count out their register without using
their calculator to add up the totals of all the money. It is upsetting that a
lot of students just cannot use their brain to do simple math anymore and that
they have to use their cellphones to do it because it is that much easier for
them than to try and figure it out without it. Although there may be times that
a student does not have a problem with learning how to do math but whether or
not it is boring. Many students will not focus in their class because it is not
interesting to them. Many students prefer to do things that are hands on over
just being lectured by their teacher. So this can have a part in if students
have mathophobia or it is just students no longer having an interest in
learning about math.
I had dealt with
mathophobia when I was younger until I was in seventh grade. At that time I was
terrified with anything that had to do with math and almost never wanted to do
anything that was related to math it had all scared me. What also did not help
me was that I had a teacher in third grade that would yell at us if we did not
do the math right. He had made me practice over and over multiplication until I
had gotten it right, but the more I did it the worse I got because I got so afraid
and never wanted to look at it again. Then part of the way through third grade I
had moved and started at a new school but the fear of math had stayed with me. I
did try harder but it never got better for me. Then in seventh grade I had a
teacher who had made math no longer scary to me. She had shown me that math is
not that bad.
I agree that we have become too dependent on technology. Calculators were invented as a last resort, not a first option. Our brains are capable of doing more than we allow them to do.
ReplyDeleteI can relate to your negative experience with a teacher. Each student learns in a different way and at a different pace, and teachers must be willing to accommodate to their students' individual needs. Some students learn slower than others, but that does not mean that they cannot learn at all. All students can succeed if given an opportunity to do so.
I am sorry that your third grade teacher was very mean to you when it came to math. That is not right and it could really upset students, especially third graders like you were. My mom was actually a 3rd grade teacher for several years (she now teaches 5th grade), I remember being in the 3rd grade when she was teaching it. I thought, "yay I won't have to do any work because mom will help me all year." Well, I obviously had to do the work, but she made it so easy. She really helped me when I needed it. Although every teacher has a different style of teaching math, most do it in a way that is helpful to students. Again, I'm sorry that you had to deal with a cruel 3rd grade teacher, but your 7th grade teacher made you feel better about math, which is very nice and I wish all teacher were helpful and not mean to their students.
ReplyDeleteI had a similar problem although mines was in eighth grade. My teacher literally told me that he hated me. I was pretty bad at math, or maybe he was just going to fast. But usually the teachers have a big impact on whether or not we like a subject. If they treat the students well and patiently, then the student will be more comfortable learning in that environment. Unfortunately, that wasn't the case for us. But that's what we're here for, to learn to be great teachers! Goodluck!
ReplyDeleteWow, reading all these experiences is making me sad! Think about how those teachers changed your attitude and made you feel and make sure that you are the opposite kind of teacher!!!
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately your definitely correct when you say that more and more students are becoming overwhelmed by mathophobia, its very true. I also like how you pointed out mathophobic variations according to age, like how a little kid will ask to go to the nurse. Additionally your'e probably right when you say that cell phones don't help teenagers with mathophobia. As you stated, when faced with a relatively simple problem, most teens turn to their cell phones. I guess this made me question whether or not cell phones somehow add to a persons general anxiety and how that could possibly effect whether or not a person is a mathophobe and to what degree they are. Its also interesting that you point out that you dealt with mathophobia til 7th grade because in my mind that's when kids start to develop a fear of math.
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