A Study on Prospective Teachers' Anxiety About Teaching Mathematics

Mathematics anxiety is defined as feeling anxious and nervous about solving mathematical problems and using numbers in daily life and academics. While mathematics is very so important in every aspect of life, unfortunately, many people avoid it and talk about how difficult it is. Some studies show that mathematics anxiety is transmitted by teachers. For this reason, it is considered very important to reduce the anxiety levels of prospective teachers regarding teaching mathematics before they ensure their profession and to send them to service in a way that they are successful in their fields and boosts their self-confidence. In this context, this study aimed to examine the anxiety levels of prospective primary school teachers towards teaching mathematics. In line with this purpose, answers to the following questions were sought: (1) do prospective primary school teachers' mathematics teaching anxiety levels vary according to their grade level, (2) do they vary according to their mathematics grade point averages? In line with this purpose, the research was conducted with 60 students studying in the Primary School Teaching Department at Khoja Akhmet Yassawi international Kazakh-Turkish University. The study employed a descriptive survey model. The Anxiety Scale for Teaching Mathematics was used to determine the anxiety levels of prospective primary school teachers regarding teaching mathematics. The results of the study revealed that prospective teachers' anxiety about teaching mathematics was low, did not differ according to their success in mathematics and mathematics teaching courses, and varied according to their grade level.