6歲孩子因爲"數學焦慮"感到害怕絕望大綱

Children as young as six feel fear, rage and despair as a result of "mathematics anxiety", a condition which can cause physical symptoms and behaviour problems in class, according to a study.

根據一項研究報道，6歲的小孩子因爲“數學焦慮”而感到害怕，憤怒，以及絕望，這種情況可能在課上引起孩子們的生理性症狀及行爲問題。

Pupils in both primary and secondary school can find themselves locked in a cycle of despair, suffering from anxiety which harms their maths performance, which in turn leads to increased anxiety.

中小學生髮現焦慮會使他們的數學成績降低，而數學成績降低反過來又讓他們更加焦慮，他們陷入了絕望的循環。

Researchers say maths anxiety should be treated as a "real concern" because of the damage it does to a child's learning. They also point out it may be contributing to a growing maths crisis in the UK, where the level of adult numeracy is relatively low and getting worse.

研究人員說，數學焦慮應該被視爲一種“真正的擔憂”，因爲它會損害孩子的學習能力。他們還指出，這可能是導致英國日益嚴重的數學危機的原因，在英國，成人算術水平相對較低，而且還在惡化。

According to the Nuffield Foundation report, Understanding Mathematics Anxiety, the proportion of adults with functional maths skills equivalent to a GCSE grade C has fallen from 26% in 2003 to 22% in 2011. In contrast, functional literacy skills are steadily increasing, with 57% of working-age adults gaining the equivalent level.

根據NF報道，爲了理解數學焦慮，成年人應用數學技能達到GCSE成績C的比例，在2003的26%已經降到22% 到2011。相比之下，應用讀寫能力正平穩地上升，有57%的成年人達到同樣C成績的水平。

Researchers from the faculty of education and the centre for neuroscience in education at Cambridge University worked with 2,700 primary and secondary Students in the UK and Italy – including detailed one-to-one interviews – to explore maths anxiety and its causes.

來自劍橋大學教育學院和神經科學教育中心的研究人員與英國和意大利的2700名中小學生進行了合作，包括詳細的一對一訪談，以探討數學焦慮及其原因。

The children they interviewed provided graphic descriptions of their fears about maths. "I felt very unwell and I was really scared," said one primary school student, describing his reaction during a lesson about equivalent fractions. "Because my table's in the corner I kind of tried not to be in the lesson."

他們採訪的孩子們形象地描述了他們對數學的恐懼。“我感覺很不舒服，我真的很害怕，”一名小學生說。他描述了他在一堂關於等效分數的課上的反應。“因爲我的桌子在角落裏，所以我儘量逃課。”

The co-author Dr Ros McLellan, who led the interview research, said: "Maths anxiety is very much an emotional reaction. Younger kids won't want to go to school when they have maths classes; they get tearful and upset.

共同作者RosMcLellan博士領導了這次採訪研究，他說：“數學焦慮在很大程度上是一種情緒反應。年幼的孩子在上數學課的時候不會想去上學，他們會淚流滿面，心煩意亂。“

"We had some young people saying: 'I get so frustrated, I end up hitting the desk,' and then they get themselves into bother. If we know what is at the bottom of the problem rather than addressing the symptoms we can address the root cause."

”我們有一些年輕人說：‘我太沮喪了，我最後會想要敲打桌子，’然後他們就麻煩了。”如果我們知道問題的根源是什麼，而不是解決問題的表象，我們就可以解決問題的根源了。”

Researchers found there was a general sense that maths was hard compared with other subjects, which led to a loss of confidence, yet the study points out that most children with high levels of maths anxiety are normal to high achievers in the subject.

然而，研究指出，大多數數學焦慮程度高的孩子在這門學科中取得高分也是正常的。

Key triggers for anxiety included poor marks, test pressures, teasing by fellow pupils and a confusing mix of teaching methods. National Sats tests taken in the final year of primary school were a cause of anxiety for some, while the transition to secondary school was challenging for others.

引發焦慮的主要因素包括成績不佳、考試壓力、同學們的取笑以及各種教學方法的混淆。對一些人來說，小學最後一年參加的國家技能考試是一種焦慮的原因，而過渡到中學對另一些人來說則是一種挑戰。

The children's emotional reactions included feelings of apprehension, tension, frustration or fear, while physical symptoms included butterflies, a racing heart or struggling to catch breath.

兒童的情緒反應包括恐懼、緊張、沮喪，而身體症狀包括痙攣、心跳加速或呼吸困難。

"The experiences of maths anxiety are multifaceted, with students expressing emotions from rage to despair," the report says. "Students often reported overwhelming negative emotions which in some cases led them to act out in class and be removed from the classroom, or to become tearful. Others reported that they dreaded their mathematics lessons or that physical symptoms had an impact on their ability to flourish."

“數學焦慮的經歷是多方面的，學生表達從憤怒到絕望的感情，”報告說明。“學生經常表達巨大的負面情緒，再一些案例裏，她們會衝出課堂，被趕出教室，或者開始哭泣。另一些說到她們害怕數學課，或者身體症狀影響她們的發展能力”。

It warns teachers and parents that their own anxieties about maths might have a negative influence and so urges them to tackle these first. It also urges policymakers to be conscious that emotional blocks can affect learning potential.

它警告教師和家長，他們自己對數學的焦慮可能會產生負面影響，因此敦促他們首先解決這些問題。它還敦促政策制定者意識到情緒障礙會影響學習潛力。