Increasing Self-efficacy and Alleviating Anxiety using Touch Math and Instructional Games: An Intervention for Low Performing Seventh Graders

Abstract

The pre-experimental one-grouped pretest-posttest design was the researcher’s way on providing a single group and intervention during the experiment. This study was limited to the mathematical anxiety, self-efficacy and mathematical performance of the 19 grade seven students of Telesforo and Natividad Alfonso High School for the school year 2016-2017. The coverage of this study was the third grading period geometry lesson and its main goal was to determine the problems that contribute to the mathematical anxiety and respondents’ self-efficacy and its effect on their performance. Most especially, its major aim was to increase the students’ self-efficacy and decrease their anxiety using touch math and instructional games strategies. As drawn from the results of the study, touch math on instruction and instructional games on assessment positively decreased students’ mathematical anxiety, negatively increased their self-efficacy, and developed their academic performance. And it was suggested that different approaches such as cooperative learning, making topics practical and workable, and students’ perceptions towards Mathematics should be taken into considerations in teaching Math to enhance their mathematical ability.