scholarly journals The relationship between middle school students’ mathematics anxiety and their mathematical understanding

2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 599-622
Author(s):  
Yasemin Kaba ◽  
Sare Şengül
Keyword(s):  
Middle School ◽  
Middle School Students ◽  
Mathematics Anxiety ◽  
Mathematical Understanding ◽  
Strong Positive Correlation ◽  
School Students ◽  
Grade Levels ◽  
Learning Mathematics ◽  
And Mathematics ◽  
The Relationship

Development of mathematical understanding is an active process involving mathematical structures and actions. Why do students not understand mathematics? What are the reasons for that? Students have some difficulties to understand mathematics and one of them is anxiety. Mathematics anxiety is defined as an uncomfortable feeling experienced when performing a mathematical task, which is seen as an obstacle to learning mathematics. For this reason, the aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between middle school students’ mathematics anxiety and their mathematical understanding. In addition to this, possible relationship was analyzed according to gender and grade levels variables. The relational screening model was used. The study was carried out with 466 middle school students. “Determining the Mathematical Understanding Levels Scale” and “Mathematics Anxiety-Apprehension Survey” were used as data collection instruments. According to the results of the study, there was a significant strong positive correlation between middle school students’ mathematics anxiety and their mathematical understanding. On the other hand, the results showed no significant differences between students’ mathematics anxiety and their mathematical understanding with respect to gender. However, the findings revealed significant differences in both students’ mathematics anxiety and their mathematical understanding with respect to grade levels.

scholarly journals AN INVESTIGATION OF VARIOUS VARIABLES’ EFFECTS ON MIDDLE SCHOOL STUDENTS’ SKILLS OF RECOGNIZING FIGURE PATTERNS

2013 ◽  
Vol 55 (1) ◽  
pp. 45-56
Author(s):  
Abdullah Cagri Biber ◽  
Abdulkadir Tuna ◽  
Lutfi Incikabi ◽  
Engin Yigit
Keyword(s):  
Middle School ◽  
Middle School Students ◽  
Mathematics Achievement ◽  
Strong Relationship ◽  
Female Students ◽  
Survey Method ◽  
School Students ◽  
Grade Levels ◽  
Test Female ◽  
And Mathematics

The purpose of this study was to investigate the middle school students’ skill of determining figure patterns in terms of the variables of gender, grade, and mathematics achievement. Being descriptive in nature, this study conducted through relational survey method. The participants of the study were total of 137 (fifth, sixth and seventh grade) students from a middle school placed in a province of northern Turkey. Among the results of the study were that the students’ skills of detecting figure pattern did not considerably affected by their grade levels. However, in the figure pattern test female students were more successful than the males. Moreover, a positively-directed strong relationship was detected among the points which students get from mathematic lesson and their achievement in the figure pattern test. Based on the observations done, the middle school students’ mistakes in the test were mostly due to their lack of attention to the questions; they mostly focused on the drawing of the figure patterns and did not think the relation between the number of figures and steps. Key words: figure patterns, mathematics education, middle school students.

scholarly journals The Relationship between Spatial Ability and the Conservation of Matter in Middle School

2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 4
Author(s):  
Merryn Cole ◽  
Jennifer Wilhelm ◽  
Briana Marie-McKnight Vaught ◽  
Corinne Fish ◽  
Hailey Fish
Keyword(s):  
Middle School ◽  
Middle School Students ◽  
Spatial Ability ◽  
Conceptual Understanding ◽  
Visual Test ◽  
School Students ◽  
Chemistry Students ◽  
Science Technology ◽  
And Mathematics ◽  
The Relationship

Research has shown that spatial ability plays a key role in understanding STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) content, including chemistry. Conservation of Matter (CoM) is an essential but challenging topic for chemistry students of all ages to grasp; it is often taught in a way where students memorize it but do not learn what it means conceptually. This research explored the relationship between understanding spatial ability and conceptual understanding of CoM in middle school students. CoM was examined in two ways using the Conservation of Matter Assessment (CoMA): through questions on conservation of atoms and the conservation of mass. Spatial ability was measured using the Purdue Spatial Visual Test: Rotations (PSVT). Significant, moderate correlations were found between spatial ability and understanding of CoM prior to and after a chemistry unit including instruction on CoM; the correlation was stronger after instruction. Scores on the PSVT and CoMA significantly increased pre to post instruction. The data show spatial ability may impact students’ understanding of CoM, which contributes to the literature on factors that impact students’ understanding of chemistry. Additionally, it provides evidence that teachers should consider including spatially rich experiences in their chemistry classroom, such as making explicit connections between the areas of Johnstone’s Triad.

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