“I was Good at Math, but I was not Really Comfortable and Confident. Now I am.”: Affective Outcomes from Fostering Creativity in Calculus I

Abstract Fostering mathematical creativity requires intentional actions from instructors. In earlier work, we developed the Teaching for Mathematical Creativity Guide, which identified four types of teaching actions that students in creativity-based Calculus I courses associated with their creativity: Task-Related, Holistic Teaching, Active Learning, and Teacher-Centered.In this paper, we examine five affective outcomes students reported in response to these actions—Enjoyment, Confidence, Comfort, Reframing, and Negative Feelings—with Enjoyment, Confidence, and Comfort emerging most prominently. Enjoyment was most frequently linked to Holistic Teaching and Task-Related actions. We offer six concrete teaching actions surfaced from the analysis of teaching action-affect overlaps. These findings demonstrate how creativity-fostering teaching actions can cultivate not only students’ mathematical creativity but also their affective engagement with mathematics.