HASTI PUBLIC SCHOOL & JR.COLLEGE,DONDAICHA
BLOG NUMBER 133
The subject of mathematics makes man orderly, mathematics makes our life orderly and prevents chaos. Some of the qualities that are nurtured by mathematics are :-* Reasoning power*, creativity, abstract or spatial thinking, critical thinking, problem solving ability and even effective communication skills.
Maths is the cradle of all creations, without which the world cannot move even an inch. Whether it is cook or farmer, carpenter or mechanic, shopkeeper or doctor, engineer or scientist, musician or magician, everyone needs maths in their daily life. Even insects (INSECTS) also use maths in their daily life for their survival.
Snails make their shells, spiders make their webs, and bees make hexagonal honey combs. There are countless examples of mathematical patterns in the fabric of nature.
Any person can be a mathematician if he is given proper guidance and training in the early period of his life. But Mathematics, for many students, is no less furious than a demon. Many students fall asleep as soon as they open a math book. His score in maths is very low. They just stop saying that they can’t do it*.
Unfortunately, *avoidance of maths leads to low aptitude*, resulting in math phobia.
Math phobia can be a feeling of stress, apprehension, or fear that interferes with math performance. A person with math phobia does not necessarily lack ability in math; Instead, he/she may not perform to his/her full potential for the intervening symptoms of anxiety.
Math phobia, for some researchers, is not derived from personal experience but from parents and teachers. When parents with high math anxiety try to help their children with their homework, they unintentionally express the idea that math is difficult and anxiety-provoking.
Teachers expect a definite answer from the students and at some point of time this rigidity is so high that the students have no freedom to express in their own way.
A very important factor in motivating children to study mathematics is that the teacher remains positive and enthusiastic about mathematics.
Teachers should not present mathematics as an intractable, difficult subject because it is not.
It should be shown to the children that maths is a creative subject.
Learning maths is almost like learning music or art, as compared to learning history or biology.
The fundamentals of math never change, but the way we solve math problems presents tons of variability!
For example, basic math such as estimating prices when shopping, fractions in cooking, decimals in financial transactions and measuring skills in sewing or woodworking are very essential in a lifestyle. Therefore the teaching of mathematics should be accompanied by experiences of everyday life.
Everyone is capable of learning, but this ability depends on different methods of math, for example, through acting, cooperative groups, visual aids, hands-on activities, and technology.
The first thing students need to know is the symptoms of math phobia. There are four common symptoms of math phobia: nervousness, paranoia, passive behavior, and lack of confidence.
Once a student knows that s/he has math phobia he/she has to accept it. Having a math phobia in itself doesn’t make one bad people
Changing the way you study maths can change the attitude towards it. Simply memorizing a formula is not as effective as knowing what the formula means and knowing when to use it.
Students should read the textbook thoroughly and write questions to ask later in class.
Working with a study group can sometimes help to understand the subject better than doing everything alone.
Peer learning is more helpful for students especially those who suffer from math phobia.
Positive reinforcement is a great way to help a child overcome math phobia. Instead of being negative when something was wrong, parents should discuss the problems with them and emphasize the aspects that they were right. Point out the skills they have mastered and remain positive about those that still require some work.
To help a child struggling with math, a parent needs to know how it is being taught in his or her classroom. Some parents come in regular contact with the teacher and discuss their children’s problems. Those kids definitely do better.
Parents should avoid making statements around their children that may give them the impression that parents are comparing them to their classmates or siblings.
Lastly, there are many people who achieved success in life without mastering mathematics. So being too paranoid about math scores is pretty much baseless. A patient, positive and supportive attitude towards children can help overcome math phobia.
*At our Hasti school we are insisting on using following techniques to make study of mathematics more interesting *
1. Math games …
2. Visual aids and picture books …
3. Using modern technology. …
4. Take a hands-on approach. …
5. Encourage communication with students and parents. …
6. Focus on students. …
7. Stick to fixed routines. …
8. Use real objects.
9. Riddle and out of box questions
In addition to above we are shifting to Project Base learning where do and learn will be on center stage and this will eliminate the maths phobia..
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