Is Mathematics Difficult? Just practice, and you will find it easier | Opinion & Editorial - Greater Kashmir

Just practice, and you will find it easier, says the author, a freelancer, having Electrical Engineering from IUST Awantipora.

Photo: Representational

On February 10 of this year, my article was published in this esteemed daily under the title “Calculus Phobia” after that I received an email from a student, who recently passed out his 10th  class examination. The student expressed a desire to opt for Non-Medical stream, however, he has a concern; though he likes mathematics, sometimes it gives jitters to him, and he wants to get a solution to overcome this fear. In response I wrote to him that I was also an average student in Mathematics till my class 10th, as I was not giving more time and not concentrating on the subject, but only watching and playing cricket. And after sometime when I faced some complex problems in 11th class, I realized that I have to shun the previous practice and get more concentrated on the subject. I practiced it, cleared my doubts, and after a few months, I got the confidence that not only I can clear my subject, but can help others to solve the questions.

I have experienced that whenever students face a mathematical problem their hands get sweaty, which is a sign of anxiety. Some students get worried and fail to concentrate on the subject, which they feel that it is becoming a cause of embarrassment. Researchers have found that 20% of the student population is suffering from this problem. Some psychologists even consider it an under-diagnosed condition.

Mathematics Anxiety doesn’t mean that the student is bad enough to take maths as his subject. 

Photo: Maryam Mirzakhani

Maryam Mirzakhani, an Iranian influential Mathematician who dreamt of being a novelist, was struck by the spell of Mathematics; she later went on to win the “Fields Medal”, the highest award in Mathematics. She too felt unconfident and lost interest in mathematics, as her middle school class teacher didn’t find him so intelligent.

...If students are not comfortable in mathematics, then it may impact their quantitative analysis, logical reasoning, and aptitude part which are the part of all job oriented competitive examinations. 

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Source: Greater Kashmir