The paper focuses on math anxiety in the secondary school students in West Bengal trying to see the differences between genders, habitat (urban/rural) and type of schools (government/private). A stratified random sample of 270 students was chosen through classes IX and X and data were gathered using a standardized Mathematics Anxiety Scale and analyzed in terms of descriptive statistics, t-tests and correlation analysis. Results showed that there were large differences in gender on mathematics anxiety (boys had more anxiety) and no habitat-based differences and school type differences (government school students reported higher anxiety). The mathematics anxiety exhibited a significant negative relationship with mathematics performance (r = -0.87). The paper presents several implications on education intervention and recommends future research directions in terms of longitudinal studies and strategies that reduce anxiety.
Dr. Tuhin Ghosh (Sun,) studied this question.