success with math

What states of mind help us have success with math? People who are comfortable with mathematics perceive the world in ways that are not available to people who are not. They see connections between quantities the way students of history perceive connections between events. They grasp the essentials of a problem and can abstract these by means of notation so as to be able to predict--without going through a large number of calculations--what will happen if any of those essentials were to change. They have a sense of what is absolute and what is relative in a particular context. They understand that to say an object is moving slowly has little meaning, except in relation to something else. And they are unlikely to be fooled by statements that don't hold up to quantitative analysis.

Math Anxiety

How will you know when you are getting comfortable with mathematics? You might find yourself paying closer attention to the numbers and quantities around you, recalling them with greater ease, and thinking harder and more creatively about them.

Sheila Tobias first wrote Overcoming Math Anxiety in 1978. In her updated version, she expands her analysis of the attitude and approach variables that allow students to achieve success with math. Her second book, Succeed with Math, tells teachers and students (college age and older) how to master mathematics without anxiety.

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