"Bad at Myth":

"BAD AT MATH": THE MYTH VS. THE SCIENCE

“I’m not a math person.”

“My brain is just not wired for numbers.”

“Math is too hard for me to learn.”

“I’m not good at numbers.”

“I’m dumb at math.”

"My dad (or mom) says he's not good at math either."

In my many years of teaching math, I’ve found that the single greatest hindrance to learning math is the mindset of students who say and, and more importantly, believe in these self-defeating statements. The same students will generally believe in the intelligence continuum below:

Dumb<-------------------Average-------------------->Smart

These students resign themselves to a position towards the left end of this spectrum. They carry an ardent belief that they are incapable of learning math and the sad, yet powerful, result is a hope-killing, soul-shattering, paralysis of the mind.

The truth, however, is that science, namely the latest in brain research, does not support this way of thinking about intelligence and learning. The idea of certain people being genetically “bad at math” has absolutely no scientific grounding. The brain is not a fixed entity that has a set limit to how much it is capable of. Research shows that the human brain has a plasticity that allows it to grow, stretch, and expand its capacity to learn and master new concepts. When it comes to learning math concepts, and learning concepts in general, the continuum that students should place themselves on is this one:

Just starting out---------->On my way---------->I rocked it!

We are in math class for 180 days. During that time, every student will, at some point, occupy every single point on that spectrum. That stage is by no means permanent. It also does not assign any worth or value to the individual. At any given time, a student may be at the left end for some concepts, the middle for some, and the right for some. That’s just the way that learning over a long period of time works. Learning is a journey, and it’s important that learners see it as such.

The longer I explore math, the more I appreciate its beauty. I genuinely enjoy working alongside kids to find patterns in the world of numbers and then to figure out how to make those patterns work for us. That truly is the essence of math. Mathematics is the study of patterns. Mathematicians do three things: 1) notice patterns, 2) describe patterns, 3) generalize patterns. Learning quickly in math and doing math quickly is not a high priority at all. What is important to me is that students keep an open mind, take intellectual risks, be willing to explain their thinking, embrace mistakes as vehicles that help in the process of learning and growth, keep exploring, and keep persevering.

It is sad and distressing to me when students subscribe to the notion of “I’m dumb at math” because that concept is simply invalid. It is not backed by neurological science. It is a dangerous myth that modern society has widely perpetuated and that generations of students have fallen for. The tragic result of this myth is that scores of students are missing out on a world of learning because they have essentially given up on themselves.

Having said all this, it is certainly true that different people have different aptitudes for math. For some, working with numbers and patterns comes naturally and easily. For others, it may take more time, work, and focus in order to learn and achieve in math. The bottom line, however, is that everybody has the potential to learn math, nobody is genetically blocked off from the subject. The ingredients for success in learning math then are an individual's effort, grit, and perseverance.

My greatest hope for this generation of math learners is that they would change their mindset about learning/intelligence from the “dumb-smart” continuum to the one that resembles a learning journey. I hope that as learners, they can develop a growth mindset rather than a fixed mindset. This change in mindset is the first step to learning math. Follow that up with some good ole fashioned hard work and students will be on their way. Math is a very exciting subject if students would only allow themselves to be immersed in it.

Please, please read this article entitled “The Myth of Being ‘Bad at Math’” and help to start dispelling this awful myth.

For more on growth mindset, please visit the Frustration Station section of the 8th grade math website.