Gender differences, mathematics anxiety, and first-year college students’ mathematical achievement

• Main Author: Manalaysay, Ellenita G.
• Format: text
• Published: Animo Repository 2019
• Subjects: Mathematics—Study and teaching; Academic achievement; Math anxiety; Prediction of scholastic success; Science and Mathematics Education
• Online Access: https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/faculty_research/3347
• Institution: De La Salle University

Mathematics plays a vital role in science and technology development. Its usefulness cannot be denied but most of the Filipino students perform poorly in the subject. Several factors were identified to influence student’s achievement in mathematics and one of the identified factors in the student’s attitude towards it. This study examines the influence of gender, mathematics anxiety which has to have attitudinal component, and the interaction of these two variables on the mathematical achievement of the student. 390 freshmen college students were surveyed to determine their anxiety scores when grouped according to grade, future, in-class and assignment factors. Independent sample t-test result showed that no statistically significant difference in the mathematics achievement between the male and female respondents can be concluded. Regression analysis reveals that mathematics anxiety is a predictor of achievement in mathematics and Analysis of covariance result implies that the influence of gender and mathematics anxiety when taken together on the mathematical achievement of the students is not significant. © 2019, International Journal of Scientific and Technology Research. All rights reserved.