Emmanuel Asuquo Edoho, PhD, Inah Lovina Idoko, Ekunke Anthony Abubu & Robert Onun Igwe
Abstract
This study investigated the effect of mathematics phobia on effective learning of mathematics among senior secondary school students in Calabar South Local Government Area of Cross River state. Two research questions and two hypotheses guided the study. Survey research design was used for the study. A sample of 168 respondents (75 males and 93 females) out of a total of 2576 SS2 students were used. A self-developed questionnaire tagged “Mathematics Phobia Questionnaire” was used in the study. The internal consistency of the instrument was found to be 0.82 using Cronbach Alpha. Data collected were analyzed using t-test statistic and decisions were taken at 0.05 level of significance. The result of the analysis revealed that mathematics phobia has significant effect on effective learning of mathematics. Also, female students do not significantly differ from their male counterparts in the exhibition of mathematics phobia. On the basis of these findings, it was recommended among others that teachers should motivate and encourage learners to develop positive attitude towards mathematics learning.