Mathematics Achievement : The Role Of Homework And Self-Efficacy Beliefs

Bandura has studied self-efficacy, which is the extent or strength of one’s belief in one’s own ability to complete tasks and reach goals. Self-efficacy can affect all types of behaviors like academics, social and recreational. A child might have the ability to accomplish a task, but if they do not feel like they are capable of doing so, then they may fail or may not attempt the task. For example, in a study difficult math problems were given to children with

Women have always been viewed as the weaker sex, and society will continue to view them that way unless they do something about it. In the essay “When Bright Girls Decide that Math is a Waste of time”, the author Susan Jacoby discusses the problems women steering clear of math and science subjects because of the traditional view of a woman. She focused on what causes high school girls to focus on arts courses instead of STEM courses and what are the effects of it on themselves. The underlying discrimination amongst boys and girls, stereotypical thinking of parents and teachers that girls are not good at math eventually decreases the self-confidence among girls to solve science and math problems.

Disturbingly, “nearly one-fifth of high school students and over 50 percent of middle school students are enrolled in math classes whose teachers neither majored or minored in math” (Drew, 2011, p.9). In 2000, 31 percent of high

Its impressive how something like a number-saying system can influence in the level of difficulty an Asian student, compared to an American average student, can have in math. Asians have a built in advantage when it comes to math. Does that mean they are more likely to succeed? Not necessarily but it I an advantage rooted in a group’s culture, in this case, Asians. Therefore cultural legacy is another key factor in the why of what we do and who we become.

Kostos and Shin present the research problem by explaining (in great detail) the implications and consequences of students having these issues. The researchers explain the difficulty in having students focus on finding the right answer, and then shifting that focus to finding a meaningful process instead. Students are required to “communicate

One of the biggest problems Americans face today is a US student’s underwhelming academic performance. When compared to other countries, the United States comes in 18th place in math literacy and 25th place in reading literacy. The problem is not just a standard problem throughout the country, as there is much variation between graduation and subject literacy rates, with huge differences also between schools alone. These statistics are disappointing because the US is considered one of the largest world powers. The disparities in American students academic achievement is also detrimental because they are less able to compete in the global market place. Many things have been used to explain this disparity but race has often led as the main

Chapter 4 describes Tom’s school experience in Pennsylvania and Poland, and discussed the relationship between math and many American students. Tom did not like math and thought he was not good at it. When he was asked to solve a problem in his class in Poland, he tried to make an excuse to avoid going to the board to solve it, which the book hinted typically worked in his American classes. However, he was still asked to solve the problem, which he could not do. The book explained that math is a difficult subject for many American students, and that on the PISA assessment American students score pretty low. Despite the bad reputation of American students being bad at math, the state of Minnesota ranked proficient in math. Overall, the chapter explained why students struggle in math and what Minnesota did to produce high test scores (Ripley, 2013).

Among the students who continue to struggle are many minority students who show a deficit in math and science readiness. This deficit is apparent in nearly every state in the United States. Blank, Manise, Brathwaite & Langesen (1999), indicate that an examination of performance in all states reveals a point difference of 30 to 50 percentage points between white students and the minority students’ scores on the 8th grade NAEP exam.

[F]or more than a decade, research studies of mathematics education in high-performing countries have concluded that mathematics education in the United States must become substantially more focused and coherent in order to improve mathematics achievement in this country. To deliver on this promise, the mathematics standards are designed to address the problem of a curriculum that is “a mile wide and an inch deep.”

Parental beliefs about early mathematical development also vary as a function of SES. DeFlorio and Beliakoff (2014) identify parental beliefs about mathematical development to be another contributor to the SES gap in early mathematical knowledge. Parental beliefs about mathematical development include beliefs about the influence of home and preschool learning environments on early mathematical development, beliefs about the best way for children to learn foundational mathematical concepts, and beliefs about which mathematical skills and abilities emerge during the preschool years (DeFlorio & Beliakoff, 2014). It was indicated that a significant number of lower SES parents believed that preschool contributes more in preparing children for math in kindergarten than the home learning environments. Conversely, more middle SES parents believed that the home learning environment contributes more in preparing children for math in kindergarten (DeFlorio & Beliakoff, 2014). High SES mothers with higher levels of education placed more of an emphasis on child-centered, informal activities to teach early mathematical skills whereas low SES mothers with lower levels of education believed that performance-oriented, adult-led activities were more important for teaching mathematical skills (Sitpek, Milburn, Clements & Daniels, 1992). DeFlorio and Beliakoff (2014) provide a glimpse at the consequences of SES and math ability. It was reported

The National curriculum states that in Mathematics teachers should use every relevant subject to develop pupils’ mathematical fluency. Confidence in numeracy and other mathematical skills is

The researcher’s main concern was to investigate differences in math perception between those students scoring highly versus those students scoring poorly on national exams. The researcher thought that the solution would be due to cross-cultural differences in achievement.

Maths is ubiquitous in our lives, but depending on the learning received as a child it could inspire or frighten. If a child has a negative experience in mathematics, that experience has the ability to affect his/her attitude toward mathematics as an adult. Solso (2009) explains that math has the ability to confuse, frighten, and frustrate learners of all ages; Math also has the ability to inspire, encourage and achieve. Almost all daily activities include some form of mathematical procedure, whether people are aware of it or not. Possessing a solid learning foundation for math is vital to ensure a lifelong understanding of math. This essay will discuss why it is crucial to develop in children the ability to tackle problems with initiative and confidence (Anghileri, 2006, p. 2) and why mathematics has changed from careful rehearsal of standard procedures to a focus on mathematical thinking and communication to prepare them for the world of tomorrow (Anghileri).

Teacher self-efficacy is an integral element of an effective teaching and learning environment. Wentzel and Miele (2016) pointed out that self-efficacy encompasses the personal beliefs that an individual teacher has regarding his/her own capabilities to help students and the higher the self-efficacy the greater the job satisfaction. According to the self-efficacy theory, teachers with greater self-efficacy are poised to help students succeed, develop challenging activities, and be more persistent with students who have difficulties (Bandura, 1997). In addition, self-efficacy among the teachers is associated with support for student’s ideas, positive classroom environments, and higher student achievement levels

Current nationwide examination outcomes offer continuing paperwork of the should enhance the concentrate on enhancing student accomplishment in mathematics. The National Evaluation of Educational Development (NAEP) just recently launched the 2005 mathematics ratings which mirrored student accomplishment in the locations of dimension, geometry, information analysis, likelihood and algebra. Country wide, just 30 % of 8th graders were considered competent. Although mirroring a boost from previous evaluations, just 69 % of the 8th graders country wide showed a standard abilities level on the NAEP evaluation (Olson, 2005).