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How to Overcome the Phobia of Maths?
Do you break into a cold sweat when faced with math problems? You’re not alone. The fear of math, known as “math phobia,” is a common challenge for many.
Cuemath conducted a survey which revealed that 82% of students in Classes 7 to 10 have a fear of Maths. It found that only 1 in 10 students is confident about their math ability. Math phobia is mass and spread wide.
JBM Smart Start is among the top schools in Greater Noida West that ensures that the students build a strong foundation in Mathematics and excel in STEM. We ensure that the students develop a keen interest in the subject and are confident in solving Mathematical problems from a young age.
Let’s decode what Math’s phobia or anxiety is and ways to overcome it.
What is Maths Phobia?
Maths phobia is anxiety that surrounds the subject of maths. Students often feel tense, apprehensive, and fearful of the Mathematics subject which leads to them not giving their full attention and 100% in the preparation and examination ultimately affecting their Maths performance. When Maths fear takes over, students feel incompetent in the subject without giving themselves a fair shot.
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Symptoms Of Phobia of Maths
For the students who experience a phobia of Maths, the subject becomes no less than a demon. Students go in studying Maths with a belief that they won’t be able to solve the Maths challenges and sums outlined in the book so they feel sleepy when doing Maths to avoid a defeat.
This lack of preparation and confidence leads to their Maths score being low. Thus, they further avoid the subject of accepting their Maths incompetence, creating a big phobia around it.
Fear of Maths may materialize in a student lacking motivation to study the subject, having irregular Maths study schedule, procrastination doing Maths homework, negative self-talk, and inability to grasp Maths concepts. Students with Maths phobia try and memorize the solutions rather than understanding the concepts.
Factors That Lead To Phobia of Maths
1. Past Experience with Maths
Sometimes students struggle to solve Maths problems at an early age. When they don’t get the right assistance with Maths subject, they lose their confidence and develop Maths phobia. Due to fear of Maths, students don’t practice and further lose their ability to perform well in the subject.
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2. Perception of Maths as a Tough Subject
Many people agree that math can be tough. This idea is commonly believed by young students, which makes them not want to study math. They’re afraid of failing in math, as they’ve heard it can be tricky.
3. Ineffective Teaching Methods
When the teaching methods employed by the educators are improper, students are unable to grasp the concepts easily. They struggle to comprehend the subject and when they find no help with Maths, the anxiety of being not being good at Mathematics kicks in. This fear of Maths incompetency stays with them for years until the action to eradicate it is taken.
4. Intimidating Maths Accuracy
Maths is a numbers game in which students must come up with accurate answers to the problems. This need for precision in Mathematical sums can overwhelm the students.
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How To Overcome The Fear Of Maths?
Math might seem tough, but with our easy-to-follow tips, you can build your confidence and conquer the subject. Here is how to overcome the fear of Maths:
1. Cultivate Positive Outlook
Thoughts of ‘I can’t’, ‘Maths is not my thing.’, ‘I have a hard time doing Maths’ can paralyse students from picking up the subjects. Instead tell the students that they can do anything they put their mind to, ‘Maths is easy and fun’ and they can solve any Maths problem with the right approach. Give them small challenges and easy goals to grow their confidence.
2. Talk About Fear Openly
Encourage students to talk about their phobia of Maths freely. Listen to their thoughts on Mathematics subject, what feelings it evokes, what they find easy to do, what they dread and struggle with. With all their mind clattering out, you can direct them towards eradicating the fear and embrace why they possibly enjoy doing the subject.
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3. Breathing Exercises
When the Maths anxiety gets too much, stabilizing the mind by focusing on breathing helps. Tell the students to take a few deep breaths, completely focus on their breathing and nothing else, rest their minds a while, and then, start afresh with some affirmations such as
- I am comfortable with learning new math concepts.
- I allow myself to fail and try again.
- I am a capable Math learner.
- Struggling with Maths problems helps me grow.
4. Practice is the Key
The more you practice in Maths, the better you will get at Maths and this way, you will eradicate the phobia of Maths. It is a subject that demands practice than any other subject. With each practice session, encourage the students to interpret the concepts with their unique perspective. Seeing concepts in a way that fits them would let them comprehend and remember the concepts for much longer and will make it easier for them to solve problems.
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5. Real-Life Applications
The more you practice in Maths, the better you will get at Maths and this way, you will eradicate the phobia of Maths. It is a subject that demands practice than any other subject. With each practice session, encourage the students to interpret the concepts with their unique perspective. Seeing concepts in a way that fits them would let them comprehend and remember the concepts for much longer and will make it easier for them to solve problems.
6. Make Maths Easy & Fun
Sure, maths problems can be complicated and that’s what scares the students. Though with the right teaching method, Maths can be made simple. When you make difficult things simpler and teach them step by step, students can understand and learn the concepts of Mathematics better. Jog the student’s minds with fun Maths games & puzzles and see their interest in the subject spike up.
7. Discuss Importance of Maths in Life
Tell the students about the various practical situations where their maths abilities will be useful. When they grow up, they can easily keep a tab on their income, budget their expenses and investments, file for taxes, and much more which require basic mathematical knowledge.
8. Do Peer Learning Activities
Students may be hesitant to ask questions openly in class but are much less shy in an activity that encourages them to discuss concepts with their peers. This way students learn to solve problems together and the concepts which lack student understanding come forth and are discussed again in the class.
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9. Make Math Learning Creative
Students grasp more when they are introduced to the concepts through Maths activities. Ask students to experiment with maths and think of varieties of ways they can get the number 6 with addition and subtraction of numbers 0 to 9 or do a paper-cutting activity that showcases how the sum of all angles of a triangle is 180. Interactive activities such as these will make Maths so fun.
Conclusion
Maths phobia can be overcome when it is acknowledged and dealt with in a constructive way. Students can easily win over Maths when they follow the steps mentioned above.
JBM Smart Start is the best school in Greater Noida that helps students create a strong foundation in Mathematics from an early so that students are excited to do Maths rather than fearful.
Frequently Asked Questions
Math phobia at its extreme when students have a massive fear of numbers is called arithmophobia or numerophobia. It is also referred to as math anxiety.
Math phobia can be caused by many factors such as unpleasant previous experiences with Maths, everybody calling it a difficult subject, ineffective teaching methods, and more.
The steps to overcome the fear of Maths involve acknowledging the fear by talking about it, thinking positively & avoiding negative self-talk, doing breathing exercises to stablise your mind, and practicing incessantly, recognising the importance of Maths and its real-life applications, and making Maths concepts simpler and fun.
