INTERACTIVE EFFECT OF BRAIN-BASED INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGY AND MATHEMATICS ANXIETY ON STUDENTS’ ATTITUDE TO SENIOR SECONDARY SCHOOL MATHEMATICS

Abstract

This study investigated the interactive effect of brain-based instructional strategy and mathematics anxiety on students’ attitude to Senior Secondary School Mathematics. A pre-test, post-test, control group quasi-experimental design was adopted with a 2 x 3 x 2 factorial matrix.  The sample size was 522 Senior Secondary School Students from nine randomly selected co-educational schools from five Local Government Areas in Oyo State. Five schools were randomly assigned to the experimental (Brain-Based Instructional Strategy – BBIS), while four schools were assigned to the control group (Non-Brain-Based Instructional Strategy – NBBIS).  The instruments were:  Mathematics Attitude Questionnaire (r = 0.83), Mathematics Anxiety Rating Scale (r = 0.81) and Assessment Sheet for Evaluating Teachers’ Performance. One research question guided the study in juxtaposition with one hypothesis.  Data obtained from the research questions were analyzed using mean scores while the hypothesis was tested at 0.05 level of significance using the analysis of covariance (ANCOVA). There was a significant interaction effect of Brain-based instructional strategy and mathematics anxiety on students’ attitude towards Mathematics.

Brain-based instructional strategy was more effective in improving students’ attitude to Mathematics than the conventional method:  both the treatment and anxiety worked together to produce a joint impact on students’ attitudes. Teachers of Mathematics could, therefore, adopt this strategy for teaching secondary school students.  This would go a long way in reducing the fear, test-phobia and undesirable attitude in Mathematics among students.