Math Attitudes and Math Anxiety in Black and Latina Girls in Low-Income Elementary Schools

• In Event: Roundtable Session 12
  In Roundtable Session: Exploring Stereotypes, Mind-Sets, and Attitudes of Black and Latina Girls

Abstract

This study longitudinally examines the math attitudes, math anxiety, and math achievement of 155 Black and Latino children from first through fourth grade. Preliminary multi-group path analysis show that negative attitudes toward math relate to higher levels of math anxiety in first grade for both boys and girls. However, math anxiety in first grade predicted fourth grade math performance for girls only, suggesting that Black and Latino girls with higher levels of early math anxiety pay a higher price for endorsing negative views about math. Ultimately, these findings can begin to inform how macro-level structural inequities and micro level intergroup interactions shape the math attitudes Black and Latina, low-income children already have which ultimately have implications for their long-term learning.

Authors

• Saskias Casanova, Arizona State University - Tempe

• Rose K. Vukovic, University of Minnesota - Twin Cities

• Michael J. Kieffer, New York University