Parents’ mindsets toward math can impact the support students receive and how students perceive the subject, according to a new Gallup survey. Parents with positive feelings toward math (73%) are more confident in helping their children with math homework than those with negative feelings (38%).
To combat this, Latrenda Knighten, president of the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics, recommends educators and parents foster a growth mindset in students and move away from the belief that there’s such a thing as “math people” and those who aren't.
“Some things may require more practice than others, but it's something that's accessible to all,” Knighten said. “It's really about fostering that idea of a positive identity for mathematics so students see themselves as learners and doers capable of performing that task.”
Math is an important part of the personal and professional lives of most adults in the U.S., but many feel their skills in the subject are lacking. Four in 10 adults reported wishing they had learned more math skills in middle or high school, according to the Gallup survey, while 6 in 10 said math should be prioritized in schools.
“Americans overwhelmingly believe math is essential in life and work, but many wish they had gained more real-world skills like data science and financial literacy,” said Justin Lall, principal at Gallup, in a statement. “Aligning math education with these practical applications could not only boost engagement but better prepare future generations for success.”
The survey found that Americans have mixed feelings about math overall. While 60% said math makes them feel challenged and 21% feel excited, 37% reported exclusively negative feelings like confusion and boredom.
Reframing math perceptions also involves reimagining what math instruction looks like in the classroom, Knighten said, adding that math is often considered a solitary subject when it’s not.
Instead, she invites educators to offer opportunities for students to work in groups and solve problems collaboratively because it reflects how they will need to problem-solve in the real world. She said this can also help alleviate some of the pressure, because students get to discuss their answers with someone else first.
“Let's make sure that the voice you're hearing the most in the classroom is the student,” said Knighten.
The survey found that 43% of U.S. adults wish they had learned more math skills in middle or high school, with 68% wanting to learn more financial math skills like personal finance, budgeting and accounting.
Knighten said this is a sentiment she's noticed among students as well.
“Whenever you talk to 8th grade and above, when they talk about real-world math, they bring up things that are related to financial literacy like how to manage a bank account or how to save for a car, probably because some of them have jobs, and those are things they need to think about,” she said.
Connecting math instruction to these real-world scenarios can make math more accessible, so she encourages teachers to challenge students to think about how math shows up in their interest areas like sports, fashion or video games.
For example, when teaching fractions and ratios, educators can connect instruction to tangible things like recipes and the sugar-to-flour ratio when making cookies or baking a cake. If the proportions aren’t calculated correctly, it won’t taste quite right, Knighten said.
For educators interested in finding more ways to connect math to the real world, Knighten recommends exploring professional learning opportunities, if possible, or joining a professional organization like NCTM, which offers resources such as access to research and other effective strategies.
