- Summary
It has been found that individuals that possess a high level of mathematics anxiety often possess other forms of anxiety and tend to do worse on testing as opposed to those with a negligible amount of math anxiety. Multiple researchers conducted a study in 2017 that sought to explain how these anxiety forms worked together, and the correlation between this perceived anxiety forms with math anxiety and its relationship with performance under pressure. The researchers gathered a sample group of 1720 UK students, split into two subgroups.
The first subgroup consisted of students from year four, aged 8-9, whereas the second subgroup contained students pulled from both the 7th and 8th year, aged 11-13. They went about measuring the student’s anxiety forms and the influence of said anxiety on testing through the process of latent profile analysis, which is a statistical method centered around homing in on latent subpopulations within a population based on a preexisting set of conditions. This approach was used to measure the development of their anxiety profiles throughout testing, the key demographics of each profile, and the correlation between said profiles and their performance.
The results showed key differences between the profiles of the younger and older subgroups. Older students demonstrated a clear elevation in general and academic anxiety. The researchers found that boys in the subgroups had a higher chance than their female peers to possess a high level of academic anxiety in comparison to their general anxiety. It is shown that as the students develop in age, their separate anxieties become more specified. Perhaps most surprising is the vast contribution gender had in determining an individual’s anxiety profile. The conclusion was that math anxiety had a severe impact on the performance of students.
- Important Aspects
I believe the influence gender had on the individual’s anxiety profiles was particularly noteworthy, as it goes to show the different ways in which males and females experience stress in the classroom. The ways in which each gender develops are unique and should be considered in the evaluation. I think that the fact that older students showed a greater correlation between anxiety and performance is important if expected because with the progressing of age individuals become more conscious of the world around them.
Whereas when we are younger anxiety is a nagging feeling in the back of our head, as we get older, we begin to be able consciously to reflect on our individual anxieties, and this can lead to overthinking and other detrimental side effects. And the key conclusion of the research study, which is that math anxiety indeed does have a bidirectional relationship with math performance, is perhaps most vital. It is important to consider the effect stress and pressure to succeed can have on a student, as in most cases students are not at their “best and brightest” while under this suffocating spotlight.
- Helpful Information
I would have appreciated them including a third subgroup, comprised of primarily older students pulled from the later years of schooling or perhaps even college. I believe this would have provided an even deeper insight into the progressive development of anxiety profiles as an individual continues to age. I am curious as to how much older students’ results would differ from that of the year 7/8 students. I would predict that as individual ages, their anxieties continue to specify and in turn create a stronger correlation with performance. On the other hand, it is possible the correlation could decrease in some cases as students may better learn how to deal with their anxieties.
- My Views
This article supports my view that the unique anxieties of individual students can have a massive impact on their performance in the classroom. I think this is one of the most important aspects to consider when evaluating a student’s performance because often an individual’s innate abilities are overshadowed by their performance anxiety. This can be taken even further and applied to the everyday life of people of all ages. It is time that anxiety is recognized for what it is: a genuine problem in our modern society.
- Importance of Article
I believe this article is vital in my understanding of the struggles adolescents face while going developing. As someone who has dealt with severe anxiety in the past, I understand the toll this can take on an individual. I could see myself applying both what I learned in this article and what I have experienced in my own life to create an ideal learning environment for students of all ages.
To best understand someone, you must first put yourself in their place; to quote a line from “To Kill a Mockingbird”, you never truly understand someone “until you climb in his skin and walk around in it”. Every student is unique. Each and every student deals with anxiety in different ways, and a few barely have to deal with it at all. The most important lesson I can take from this article is that stress and pressure can have an immense impact on the performance of students; it is my job to recognize that and do everything in my power to help them succeed.
- Final Points
As someone who has dealt with anxiety in the past, this article stood out to me immediately. Overall, I found this article to be an excellent examination of the effects of anxiety on the performance of students. I view this article as an excellent learning tool that can be used to create the best learning environment possible for students, both in and out of the classroom.
Reference Page
Carey, E., Devine, A., Hill, F., Szűcs, D. (2017). Differentiating anxiety forms and their role in academic performance from primary to secondary school. PLoS ONE 12(3): e0174418. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.017441
