Motivation in Maths Lessons: Tips for Teachers

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Increasing Motivation in Maths Lessons: Advice for Teachers

When children first learn to count, numbers don’t seem scary at all. Children see their favourite characters on TV dancing around with actors dressed in giant foam number costumes and maths appears to be very jolly and not intimidating in the slightest.

Fast-forward a few years when the child is in primary school, and suddenly they may start to feel that all of those sheets of squared paper and lists of time tables they are expected to memorise is all becoming incredibly dull. Worse still, they can sense that others in the class may be getting better at the subject than they are. To a young child, experiencing this feeling of inferiority for the first time can be an experience that sticks with them for life.

So as a teacher, how can you ensure that your pupils stay motivated and interested in maths? This article will outline some points of consideration for how we in British and American cultures view the subject and will offer some advice on how maths teachers can adjust these pervasive and negative attitudes.

Maths Anxiety

Maths Anxiety is when a person feels a sense of frustration, fear, or humiliation when presented with a maths problem they find too difficult. Some people report their mind ‘going blank’ in such circumstances and as a result people with maths anxiety will shy away from maths problems in their day-to-day lives. For example, someone with maths anxiety may choose to have all of their household bills in their partner’s name because they feel they can’t keep up with the incoming and outgoing flow of money. As a result, they also end up handing over some of the power in their relationship because they are unable to make financial decisions that affect both of them.

Fear is a learned emotional response and can therefore be ‘unlearned’ or replaced with a thought construct that better serves the individual. As a teacher you should discourage self-deprecating statements in maths lessons whenever you can. Teach the children that the, ‘I’m not a maths person,’ excuse is not a valid one. Explain to your pupils that it’s okay if they got a few of their answers wrong on a maths test. As long as they have demonstrated their workings, you will be able to see where they have gone wrong and offer them help from there.

Anti-Maths Bias

The common stereotype of the ‘Maths Geek’ is a fixture in western cultures. Thanks to films and TV shows that portray these so-called maths ‘geeks’ as being quiet, socially inept, and even physically unattractive, is it any wonder that young people at such an impressionable age wouldn’t want to identify themselves as maths whizzes?

In other cultures around the world, these negative stereotypes simply do not exist. In Russia for example, maths is taught as a fundamental part of literacy – therefore, admitting that you aren’t so good at mental arithmetic carries a certain negative stigma. In terms of British cultural comparisons, it’s almost like admitting to someone that you can’t read. From reception year, Russian children are taught the basics of algebra as almost a second language. Although that sort of thing is not possible in education here – yet – it doesn’t mean that you can’t stamp out an anti-maths bias in your own classroom.

You can explain to pupils that the career prospects for those who achieve in maths are pretty great. Accountancy, economics, and civil engineering are just three of the fantastic fields with in-demand jobs that offer financial stability and job security to those who can master the fundamentals of maths. And what’s not cool about having the skills to pay the bills?

The Shame of Finger-Counting

For some, unknown reason (although my suspicion is that it might be down to TV quiz shows and action films) it is unacceptable in western cultures to spend more than 10 seconds working out a maths sum in your head. If a person spends longer than that trying to figure something out, they quickly become very anxious and begin to doubt their capabilities for mental arithmetic entirely. Similarly, it is seen as highly embarrassing to count on your fingers to figure out a maths problem, but why is this?

When the abacus was invented thousands of years ago, it was simply a counting device and no one felt ashamed to use physical counters to help them calculate sums back then. So why should pupils be embarrassed to rely on visible cues now? Break the stigma of counting on your fingers in your classroom and explain to the pupils that you would rather they took their time to get the correct answers rather than trying to impress by getting to any answer quickly. Remind them that they’re not a contestant on Countdown.

Maths is Boring

Many pupils see maths as a boring subject because of the way it is presented in lessons. Learning by rote and frequent testing places pressure on pupils in a way that seems alien to nearly all of the other subjects taught in school. As previously mentioned, maths is taught in a completely different way in Russia and in other cultures around the world. Research has shown that when maths is approached as more of a research exercise, pupil attainment in the subject increases.

For teachers, this study demonstrates how maths should be seen as more of an exercise in logic rather than a series of dry calculations; that it’s not about the single correct answer but instead about how you got to that answer. And for those pupils who still think maths is a dull subject that seems removed from their real life, this How to Teach Maths to Children article outlines motivating techniques that teachers can apply to their lesson plans.

If you have any other thoughts on how mathematics is taught in schools, please leave a comment below.

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