Math: It's Just Numbers
Some students struggle with Math anxiety
Tiffanie Meador
Issue date: 2/23/10 Section: News
A fear of math and the resulting dislike of the discipline as a whole is now being recognized as something more serious.
To label math anxiety as "an ordinary fear of math" may not be altogether accurate. According to Nickie Reich, a math lecturer at Augusta State University, math anxiety is serious.
In order to help combat the effects of this common fear, the counseling center will conduct a seminar on Feb. 25 at 2 p.m., in the Butler meeting room of the JSAC, entitled "Battling Math Anxiety." The goal of this seminar is to help students identify whether or not they truly do suffer from math anxiety, to define the symptoms of such anxiety and to suggest ways to overcome it.
"The focus is to give you strategies to deal with it," said Reich. "Usually, it stems from something in the student's past."
Shannon Stephens, a counselor and internship coordinator at the counseling center, will partner with Reich to conduct the seminar. Together, they plan to enlighten students by providing them with techniques on studying, tips on how to organize their notebooks and the importance of staying current with their math work, according to Stephens.
"I focus on sort of the counseling end of things," Stephens said. "Nickie does a really good job from an instructor's perspective of sharing some tips and words of wisdom."
According to Stephens, in the words of a counselor, math anxiety is defined by serious fear.
"It's a common problem that, for some people, goes beyond that 'I don't like this class' garden variety," Stephens said. "Students will even select majors to avoid math, and end up really limiting themselves if they are trying to avoid math altogether."
According to Stephens, when students try to avoid math as a whole, they may not fully succeed in their college careers, because math is an essential part of the core curriculum at Augusta State.
Megan Mazur, a junior biology major, said that she is only taking a math class during this spring semester because she is required to do so for her major.
To label math anxiety as "an ordinary fear of math" may not be altogether accurate. According to Nickie Reich, a math lecturer at Augusta State University, math anxiety is serious.
In order to help combat the effects of this common fear, the counseling center will conduct a seminar on Feb. 25 at 2 p.m., in the Butler meeting room of the JSAC, entitled "Battling Math Anxiety." The goal of this seminar is to help students identify whether or not they truly do suffer from math anxiety, to define the symptoms of such anxiety and to suggest ways to overcome it.
"The focus is to give you strategies to deal with it," said Reich. "Usually, it stems from something in the student's past."
Shannon Stephens, a counselor and internship coordinator at the counseling center, will partner with Reich to conduct the seminar. Together, they plan to enlighten students by providing them with techniques on studying, tips on how to organize their notebooks and the importance of staying current with their math work, according to Stephens.
"I focus on sort of the counseling end of things," Stephens said. "Nickie does a really good job from an instructor's perspective of sharing some tips and words of wisdom."
According to Stephens, in the words of a counselor, math anxiety is defined by serious fear.
"It's a common problem that, for some people, goes beyond that 'I don't like this class' garden variety," Stephens said. "Students will even select majors to avoid math, and end up really limiting themselves if they are trying to avoid math altogether."
According to Stephens, when students try to avoid math as a whole, they may not fully succeed in their college careers, because math is an essential part of the core curriculum at Augusta State.
Megan Mazur, a junior biology major, said that she is only taking a math class during this spring semester because she is required to do so for her major.
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Russian Wives
posted 3/20/10 @ 8:39 AM EST
What an awesome article! You must have spent a lot of time and effort on it-needless to say, awesome job!
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