A key to continuing occupational segregation by sex is seen to lie in "math avoidance" by women students. Borrowing from the insights of affective education, innovators have developed "reentry mathematics" courses which turn to self-conditioning, the attitudes, the psychological mindset, and the self-defeating behaviors of…

Using four scale scores from Sandman's Mathematics Attitude Inventory, relationships were found between parents' anxiety, self-concept, enjoyment of, and perceived value of mathematics and their adolescent children's attitudes. These relationships were interpreted by ability level. Significant differences in mathematics attitudes were found by…

A survey of 357 final-year preservice teachers at a small Canadian university found that male and female participants did not differ in mathematics achievement or time elapsed since taking a mathematics course, but women had significantly greater mathematics anxiety and reported less positive beliefs about mathematics utility and more negative…

Discusses how calculators and computers can assist in the teaching of the basic mathematical competencies. (YP)

Describes a study of high school students that examined gender differences in mathematics experience and attitudes as well as the association between math attitudes and computer attitudes. Results indicate a positive correlation between math experiences and attitudes and computer attitudes; and boys had more math experience and more positive…

Most mathematics anxiety has its roots in the teaching and teachers of mathematics. Because people generally are not math anxious before going to school, an examination of the previous statement proves to be well founded. This article reviews the literature and discusses different ways that teachers may help to prevent their students from becoming…

Two separate studies examined sex differences in high school and university students in Bophuthatswana on socio-personal variables. Study 1 (n=109) involving socioeconomic status, school alienation, sex, self-concept, mathematics attitude, and mathematics achievement indicated boys scored significantly higher on attitude and achievement. Study 2…

Presents the results of a United Kingdom study comparing computer anxiety, mathematics anxiety, and computer experience among college students and elementary students. Includes discussion of age, sex, and the relationship between anxiety and experience. Reports that the younger children had higher computer experience and less computer anxiety.…

Discusses a methods course for preservice mathematics teachers that addresses the affective side of learning mathematics. Students are encouraged to reflect on their experiences in relation to themselves as learners, teachers, and mathematicians. (MDH)

Examines attitudinal variables (e.g., math anxiety, attitude toward success), locus of control, high school grade point average (HSGPA), and Scholastic Aptitude Test Quantitative (SATQ) scores as predictors of first-quarter grades in a developmental mathematics course. Reports that HSGPA, SATQ, and self-confidence were significant predictors of…

A study of 8,997 women and 6,053 men investigated factors associated with development of mathematical self-concept during college. Results showed that some student background characteristics, college characteristics (including selectivity), and student experiences contribute to an overall decline in mathematics self-concept during college and that…

Describes a study comparing the effectiveness of individualized and traditional sections in a basic mathematics class at a community college. Indicates that the individualized format was a positive experience for students and enhanced skill development for participating students, but only minimally decreased math anxiety and had no effect on…

In this study, twenty-eight prospective teachers enrolled in a mathematics course participated in regular writing activities in reflective notebooks. Students' writings and data collected from interviews and surveys were used to analyze the effects of the notebooks on students' perceptions of their learning and mathematics anxiety. Students…

This article presents the results of a study in which five women in a detention facility were interviewed and asked about their prior educational histories and their experiences of GED education in jail. Three central themes emerged from the interviews. The women in the study had positive academic experiences in their early school years which were…

A new method of analyzing mathematics attitudes through symbolic drawings, situated within the field of Jungian-oriented analytical psychology, was applied to 52 preservice elementary teachers before and after a mathematics methods course. In this triangulation mixed methods design study, pretest images related to past mathematics experiences…