Questioning session in math classes
I teach math courses at a career school and frequently have students who have math anxiety and lack confidence in the subject. I encourage questions from them by giving them examples of math questions my friends ask me. That way I help them realize that I am open to any level of question. My goal is if people in my life are comfortable asking me a basic question, students should not fear asking me a question.
The other thing that I always allow is people to mouth the answers or use fingers and gestures to indicate their answers. After a student does that a few times and realizes she/he answered correctly, verbal answers and more questions follow.
Thanks for the tips. I use a white boards for each student to hold up in my math class. I find the students like this a lot and also give them the confidence in the skill they are learning.
Hi Krista, Thanks for sharing some good advice on dealing with math anxiety! Best wishes for continued success in your teaching career.
Susan Polick
