Browsing by Author "Usman Tunde SAADU, Hafees Tosin SULYMAN & Mutiat Taiye ADEKEYE"

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    Prevalence and Causes of Mathematics Phobia among Primary school pupils in Kwara State, Nigeria
    (Department of Early Childhood and Primary Education, 2025) Usman Tunde SAADU, Hafees Tosin SULYMAN & Mutiat Taiye ADEKEYE
    Mathematics phobia is a widespread emotional response that negatively impacts pupils’ attitudes, confidence, and performance in mathematics, particularly among primary school learners in Kwara State, Nigeria. The study therefore examined the prevalence and causes of mathematics phobia among primary school pupils in Kwara State. Six purposes, two research questions, and four hypotheses were used. The study used constructivist learning theory and theory of anxiety unpinned for the study. Descriptive survey research design was used for the study. The total population was106,832 public and private primary school pupils, the study sample size was 379 pupils, and multistage sampling techniques were used to select sample for the study. The instrument was used to collect data from the pupils tagged “Mathematics phobia, prevalence and causes Questionnaire (MPPCQ). The reliability coefficient for the questionnaire was 0.70 at 0.05 level of significance. Data obtained from the respondents were analyzed using frequency count and percentage for the demographic profile, and research questions. The formulated hypotheses were tested using independent sample t-test at 0.05 level of significance. The findings showed that the prevalent of mathematics phobia among primary school pupils in Kwara State was high (Mean=2.52), it was also found out that the causes of mathematics phobia is I have had unpleasant experiences with mathematics in the past that still affect my attitude toward the subject (weighted mean 3.06), it was revealed that there was no significant difference in the prevalence of mathematics phobia among primary school pupils in Kwara State, Nigeria, based on gender (t = .928; df = 377; P >0.05), there was no significant difference in the causes of mathematics phobia among primary school pupils in Kwara State, Nigeria. Based on gender (t = 1.555; df = 377; P >0.05). It was also showed that there was no significant difference in the prevalence of mathematics phobia among primary school pupils in Kwara State, Nigeria, based on school type (t = 1.359; df = 377; P >0.05). there was no significant difference in the causes of mathematics phobia among primary school pupils in Kwara State, Nigeria, based on school type (t = 6.048; df = 377; P >0.05). Based on the findings, it was concluded that there was high prevalent of mathematics phobia among primary school pupils, the causes of mathematics phobia among primary school pupils are unpleasant experience with math, discouraged from asking questions during math class. It was therefore recommended among others that The teachers should address negative past experiences with mathematics, given that unpleasant past experiences strongly influence pupils’ attitudes toward mathematics, teachers should adopt positive reinforcement strategies, provide constructive feedback, and avoid practices that may humiliate or discourage pupils