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Attitudes Toward Mathematics: A Quantitative Study On The Changing Attitudes Toward Mathematics For Middle School Students

Mathematics education continues to be a challenging matter to explore in the United States. For instance, student mathematics achievement rate has decreased or remained unchanged over the last few decades (“NAEP – 2015 Mathematics,” 2015; Provasnik, Stephens, & Perkins, 2016). Moreover, when students advance through grade-levels in school their attitudes toward mathematics often decrease (Ing & Nylund-Gibson, 2017; Mullis et al., 2016; Tuohilampi et al., 2014). This quantitative study aims to measure changes in attitudes toward mathematics across the middle school years. Five attitudinal factors emerged from the study: (1) self-efficacy and self-concept beliefs, (2) motivation to succeed in mathematics, (3) value of mathematics, (4) mathematics anxiety and stress, and (5) enjoyment of mathematics. By using a modified survey instrument and analysis of variance tests, the researcher found significant decreases in the areas of motivation to succeed in mathematics, value of mathematics, and enjoyment of mathematics among 547 sixth, seventh, and eighth graders. As a secondary analysis, the researcher found key differences in attitudes between the two traditional genders, and between standard level and advanced level mathematics classes, and among different races. In these analyses, the reported highest levels of positive attitudes toward mathematics were male, Asian, and students in the advanced level mathematics classes. Additionally, the researcher found correlations among the five factors which revealed multiple key associations. Keywords: Mathematics Education, Attitudes, Changes, Middle School Students