Dr. Mustafa Baloglu
Dr. Mustafa Baloglu, an associate professor in the Department of Education at Winston-Salem State University, recently had his study of math anxiety and an improved scale to detect students at high risk for failing math published.
The book, The Measurement of Mathematics Anxiety: Psychometric Study of the Revised Anxiety Rating Scale, deals with the relationships between such factors as psychological traits and demographic variables and a person’s anxiety toward mathematics.
“Over the past several years, I have studied such areas as a cross-cultural comparison of college students and the levels of anxiety they experience in the area of mathematics,” said Baloglu. “As it became evident that there was a connection between various factors and students failing mathematics, I wanted to contribute to an instrument that would be beneficial in screening for math anxiety.”
Baloglu’s book provides an improved scale that can help students be more successful in their math studies by allowing instructors to detect those at high risk for math anxiety. It also can provide additional information to college counselors dealing with mathematics course placement for students.
