Examining the Mathematics Attitudes of Primary School Students - A Longitudinal Analysis in the Context of Turkey

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Putri

The study tracks primary school students’ mathematics attitudes from the year they begin school through graduation from primary school and transition to middle school over a four-year period. Conducted longitudinally with students in Istanbul, Turkey, it uses a researcher-prepared Student Information Form and Aşkar’s Mathematics Attitude Scale (1989). SPSS 25.0 analyses employ Mann-Whitney U, Kruskal-Wallis H, and Spearman correlation to assess attitude levels and relationships with grades and gender.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages16

Reading Time40 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction

Affective traits and the concept of attitude

Defining mathematics attitude

Attitude’s links to learning, performance, and achievement

EXAMINING THE MATHEMATICS ATTITUDES OF PRIMARY SCHOOL STUDENTS: A LONGITUDINAL ANALYSIS IN THE CONTEXT OF TURKEY Yasemin DERINGÖL Abstract: This study was conducted with the aim of tracking the mathematics attitudes of primary school students from the year they started school until they graduated from primary school and transitioned to middle school, covering a four-year period. The research involved a longitudinal method and was carried out with the participation of primary school students in Istanbul, Turkey. The data collection instruments utilized in this study were the “Student Information Form” prepared by the researchers and the “Mathematics Attitude Scale” developed by Aşkar (1989) . Statistical analysis of the data was performed using SPSS 25.0, incorporating the Mann Whitney U test, Kruskal Wallis H test, and Spearman Correlation data analysis methods. In the study, it was observed that students had a ‘moderate’mathematics attitude in the first grade, a ‘very high’attitude in the second grade, and an overall ‘high’ attitude in the third and fourth grades. As students progressed through the grades, their mathematics attitudes decreased. Although there was a trend favoring males in scores over the years based on gender, this difference was not statistically significant. Finally, a significant relationship was found between mathematics attitude and students’mathematics grades in both the first and fourth grades Key words: Primary, attitude, mathematics, mathematics attitudes. 1. Introduction According to Bloom (1998), affective traits account for 25% of students’ achievements and contribute to 25% of the learning outcome. Considering the extensive research conducted since the early 1960s, it is observed that among the affective traits, attitude holds the longest historical significance (Ernest, 1989; Van der Sandt, 2007) . Allport (1935) notes that attitude first entered the literature of social psychology in the early nineteenth century, along with research on the predictability of voter preferences and consumer product choices in selections (Tabuk, 2018) . The concept of attitude is defined in various ways in literature. Some use this term similarly to beliefs, while others employ it in a less cognitive sense, leaning more towards emotions (McLeod, 1992) . According to Aiken (1970, p. 551), attitude is defined as “an individual’s predisposition to respond positively or negatively to an object, situation, concept, or another person.” Attitude represents “a person’s basic liking or disliking state towards a familiar target”(Hannula, 2002, p25) . The theoretical framework for attitude is formed by Bandura's Social Learning Theory. Bandura (1997) emphasizes a close relationship between individuals’ self-efficacy beliefs, attitudes, and behaviors towards any domain, asserting that this relationship plays a determinant role in the learning process. Therefore, changes in attitudes and beliefs lead to alterations in an individual’s behaviors. When a student begins their school life, attitudes towards school and learning also start to form. The experiences encountered in school contribute to the development of attitudes, either positively or negatively (Davies & Brember, 2001; Lumsden, 1994) . Negative attitudes cause students to experience shame and lack selfconfidence in the classroom, school environment, and their surrounding community. Consequently, students may experience learned helplessness (Boz & Büyükalan Filiz, 2020) . In general, attitudes, beliefs, and emotions constitute the fundamental aspects of the affective domain in mathematics education (McLeod, 1992) . The societal image and significance of mathematics can play a crucial role in influencing students’attitudes (Prendergast, Hongning & Block, 2016) . Mathematics attitude is defined as a comprehensive measure formed by the combination of liking or disliking mathematics, the tendency to participate or avoid activities related to mathematic

FAQs

What is the main purpose of the longitudinal study?

To track how primary school students’ mathematics attitudes develop from starting school until they graduate and transition to middle school over four years.

Which instruments and statistical methods are used?

The study uses a researcher-prepared Student Information Form and the Mathematics Attitude Scale by Aşkar (1989). Data are analyzed with SPSS 25.0 using Mann-Whitney U, Kruskal-Wallis H, and Spearman correlation.

How do mathematics attitudes change across grades?

Students show moderate mathematics attitude in first grade, very high in second grade, and high in third and fourth grades; overall attitudes decrease as students progress.

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Putri