I could never do maths at school: An exploration of the ways in which an online intervention for parents can change the way they think and talk about mathematics and reduce the intergenerational transmission of mathematics anxiety

Fieldhouse, Paula

Abstract

Mathematics Anxiety is widespread and is believed to affect up to 20% of the population (Ashcraft and Ridley, 2005). Parents are the primary influencers of their children’s attitudes and beliefs and if parents are anxious about mathematics, it is more likely that their children will be (Vanbinst, Bellon and Dowker, 2020; Soni and Kumari, 2017; Casad, Hale and Wachs, 2015; Ramirez et al., 2013). Children of highly anxious parents were found to have learnt significantly less mathematics in elementary school that those of less anxious parents (Schaeffer et al., 2018).

This study explored whether an hour-long, online intervention could guide parents to transmit more positive, less anxious attitudes to mathematics. In this study, an intervention, named Mathsbreak, was designed and trialled with a small number of participants (n=12). The design was informed by an initial research phase. It consisted of short video clips in which different professionals describe how they use primary-school mathematics in their jobs. It aimed to raise awareness of the utility value of mathematics and its widespread applications.

The intervention was evaluated immediately after participation and again several months later. Evaluations found that the course was positively received and effective in its aims of increasing awareness of the uses of mathematics and stimulating mathematical conversations with children. Parents remembered the key messages at both evaluation points and reported feeling more confident in supporting their children, more empowered to talk to the school about their children’s mathematics, more motivated to try mathematical activities with their children and less likely to make negative statements about mathematics.

This research showed that an online intervention targeting utility value beliefs could be an effective tool in changing the attitudes transmitted by parents. The study makes a number of recommendations regarding parental engagement, homework and approaches to teaching mathematics.

• Thesis Type: Thesis
• Deposit Date: Aug 7, 2023
• Publicly Available Date: Feb 5, 2024
• Public URL: https://uwe-repository.worktribe.com/output/11012126
• Award Date: Feb 5, 2024