How Maths Tutoring Can Reduce Anxiety

Getting help outside the classroom does more than boost scores.

Now that the school year is underway, your child probably has a good sense of how they’re doing in maths. But it’s also important to consider how they’re feeling about it. Are they having difficulty with any of the concepts or getting frustrated with their homework? At the first signs of these or any other forms of maths anxiety, it’s a good idea to seek out the help of a maths tutor or supplemental maths programme to build up their skills and confidence. This will help reduce anxiety in your child and set them up for success this school year and beyond. Here’s how:

Students get the focused attention they need.

When a student falls behind in class it’s difficult to catch up because maths concepts build on each other. It’s important for them to get a good grasp of what they’re learning at each stage before they move on to what comes next, and this often requires more individual attention than a school can provide. A good maths-learning programme will identify the areas where improvement is needed and give the student what they need to thrive. In the relaxed environment that private instruction provides, students are encouraged to ask questions and learn at their own pace. This will reduce anxiety and boost their confidence. A maths tutor can even act as a bridge between the school and the parents, which lets the child know that their maths success is being taken seriously.

Summer learning loss is addressed and remedied.

Most children lose some of their maths knowledge over the summer holidays if they didn’t stay on top of it. So when they return to school it’s important to address any gaps in their learning right away. By getting extra maths help early in the school year, the impact of the “summer slide” can be lessened, along with any maths anxiety that results from it. Enrolling your child in a maths-tutoring programme will enable them to stay on top of their maths skills so they can achieve success throughout the school year. Not only will this reduce anxiety in your child, it will most likely alleviate some of yours as well.

Doing maths problems with a tutor has been proven to reduce maths anxiety.

According to a study from the Stanford University School of Medicine, tutoring actually altered the fear circuits in children’s brains. The study, published in The Journal of Neuroscience, was the first to document an effective treatment for maths anxiety in children. “The most exciting aspect of our findings is that cognitive tutoring not only improves performance, but is also anxiety-reducing,” said the study’s senior author, Vinod Menon, Ph.D., professor of psychiatry and behavioural sciences. “It was surprising that we could, in fact, get remediation of maths anxiety.” Maths anxiety can continue throughout one’s life and even prevent someone from pursuing advanced maths and science classes as well as maths-based careers. So getting outside maths help will not only help your child this school year, it will serve them in the future as well.

Students can learn to love maths.

Children who struggle with maths or who aren’t challenged enough will eventually take on a negative view of the subject if they don’t get the support they need. This is where a good supplemental maths programme can make a difference — by turning maths into a fun learning activity that leads to true understanding instead of something that overwhelms or bores them. A good tutoring programme is able to use various methods of instruction to see how a student learns best, because each child learns differently. When maths becomes fun for kids and something they believe they’re good at, their maths anxiety subsides and their confidence goes up, not only in maths but in all their subjects. And they’re able to tap into their true potential.

Mathnasium gives students the maths skills they need to reduce anxiety.

Whether your child needs to catch up, keep up, or get ahead in maths, Mathnasium’s individualised instruction will address their unique learning needs and goals. In other words, we’ll work to eliminate their maths anxiety head-on. We’ll create a customised learning plan for them based on an individual assessment, and our highly trained instructors will teach them in the way they learn best, for true understanding. Mathnasium helps students excel in maths, develop critical thinking and problem-solving skills, and gain confidence for a promising future.

To get your child started at Mathnasium, call or visit your local learning centre today! https://www.mathnasium.com/uk

Sources: Erin Digitale, Tutoring Relieves Math Anxiety, Changes Fear Circuits in Children, Stanford Medicine News Center, September 8, 2015 Zarina Gearty, Math Anxiety is Real; How Teachers Can Help Calm the Nerves, Math For All, 2023 NYU Dispatch, Removing the Fear of Numbers with Innovative Teaching and Tutoring, April 23, 2018