TITLE:
A Toolkit for Teachers and Learners, Parents, Carers and Support Staff: Improving Mathematical Safeguarding and Building Resilience to Increase Effectiveness of Teaching and Learning Mathematics
AUTHORS:
Sue Johnston-Wilder, Janet Kilpatrick Baker, Ann McCracken, Audrey Msimanga
KEYWORDS:
Mathematical Resilience, Mathematics Anxiety and Avoidance, Growth Zone Model, Mathematical Safeguarding, Resilience Education, Relaxation Response
JOURNAL NAME:
Creative Education,
Vol.11 No.8,
August
27,
2020
ABSTRACT: Mathematics anxiety is a longstanding, prevalent, global problem, and the
scholarly literature demonstrates that it has significant consequences for both
individuals and wider society. However, to date, there has been no simple,
comprehensive, practical approach available to teachers, support staff,
parents/carers and learners to address the issue. In this paper, previous work
and existing approaches to addressing mathematics anxiety are reviewed;
underlying concepts are examined, such as psychological safeguarding in the
context of mathematics education and the distinction between the learner’s psychological states of challenge and threat. Agency
is important for the well-being of learners and those who support them;
an argument is made for an original approach to improving mathematical
safeguarding and building mathematical resilience that involves increasing
agency. This new approach brings three recognisable
tools into a toolkit designed to be accessible to teachers, learners,
parents/carers and support staff. The three tools are all individually
well-established in specialised practice; they are: the hand model of
the brain; the relaxation response and the growth zone model. It is argued that
these tools are particularly well suited to addressing mathematics anxiety,
that they are complementary and that together they form an effective and
accessible toolkit. Details from small-scale studies are shared and it is
concluded that this approach warrants further research to properly establish
efficacy.