Gender Differences in Mathematics Achievement as A Function of Math Self-Efficacy and Math Anxiety among Bale Zone High School Students
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Date
2011-05
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Addis Ababa University
Abstract
The present study was conducted on 374 (188 females and 186 males) randomly
selected high school students. The major purpose was to investigate the gender
differences of 9th and 11th graders in mathematics achievement as a function of math
self-efficacy and math anxiety.
To do this, mean difference tests and path analyses model were employed.
Accordingly, in the four high school random samples of 9th and 11til grade boys and girls
studied, the boys scored significantly higher than the girls did in math self-efficacy and
in math achievement tests. The girls were significantly more anxious about math than
the boys. However, no gender difference was found in math anxiety for 11th graders.
The mean difference tests further suggest students with high math self-efficacy and low
math anxiety scores were superior in their math achievement than those with low math
self-efficacy and high math anxiety level. In addition, the correlational analyses indicate
that math anxiety adversely affect the math self-efficacy and math achievement of high
school students (grades 9 & 11). Thus, it is concluded that high school students who
that they lack the confidence to do mathematical problems develop negative affect to
the subject, which in turn results in negative attitude that culminates in poor math
performance.
The path analyses model for the pooled subjects, except grade level, the other
variables had revealed a statistically significant direct effect on math achievement. Math
self-efficacy had strong direct and total effect on math achievement followed by math
anxiety. Math self-efficacy had a mediational and predictive role in the academic arena.
Regarding the gender sub-group path analyses model, for both genders math selfefficacy
and math anxiety had statistically significant direct effects on math
achievement, the predicting power being higher for males than females. For the pooled
as well as the gender sub-group, the contribution of math self-efficacy to achievement
was higher than the other variables considered in the study.