TITLE:
The Phobia and Contentment for Mathematics. What Context Factors Can Do?
AUTHORS:
Isaac Bengre Taley, Douglas Koranteng Ndamenenu
KEYWORDS:
Mathematics Anxiety, Mathematics Learning, Learning Style, Gender, School-Type
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Access Library Journal,
Vol.9 No.4,
April
12,
2022
ABSTRACT: The enactment of Ghana’s high school mathematics enjoins mathematics teachers to provide well-suited classroom instruction that engages students physically and cognitively. Since learners’ context factors can compromise the instructional efforts of mathematics teachers in delivering the curriculum, this study sought to explore the associations between the levels of students’ mathematics learning and mathematics anxiety with their gender, school type and learning styles. A descriptive survey involving the administration of questionnaires was used to gather data from 322 senior high school students in an educational directorate in Ghana. The data were analyzed with contingency tables, chi-square tests of associations, means and standard deviations. The results showed that mathematics learning and math anxiety levels were not statistically associated with students’ gender, school type and learning style, although differences in the mean scores and frequencies were observed. Besides, the levels of mathematics learning were significantly associated with the levels of mathematics anxiety. Consequently, it was suggested that mathematics teachers include these contextual factors in preparing and implementing their classroom instruction to make instructional provisions compatible with learners.