Mathematics Autobiographies

Mathematics anxiety among students and their parents has been documented for years (Fiore 1999; Jackson and Leffingwell 1999). As a classroom teacher, I saw it often in the eyes of my students on the first day of class. Now, as a mathematics teacher educator, I see a passion for mathematics in the eyes of my preservice teachers. How students feel about mathematics makes a difference in how they will learn and how they will teach (Hembree 1990). As a result of research and my own experience, the first assignment that I give students each year is to write a mathematics autobiography. In addition, I ask their parents to write a letter that introduces me to their son or daughter.