We often see that children are scared of
mathematics. This manifests itself as a reluctance to understand the subject,
and ultimately in them pushing the subject aside.
The truth is that Mathematics is an
interesting and unique subject. This is the sense that we need to instill in
them.
Mathematics is unique in the sense that all
other areas we study came from our curiosity about the universe around us. We
looked up at the night sky, and from our curiosity about what we saw, came up
with astronomy and physics. We looked at the proliferation of life around us,
and developed the science of biology. And so on.
But mathematics is something that
originated in the human mind. It is true that the start of mathematics came
from daily activities, where we distilled the concepts of numbers and counting,
but soon it surpassed those humble origins and became something we create from
our minds – pure abstract thought. No wonder it is often called “The language
of science”.
The reason why some children fear it is
that it is projected in our education system as a very difficult area. However,
this is not really true, but one thing that really helps is practice. It’s true
in all areas of human endeavour, but a special magic to understanding
mathematics. Continuous practice with various types of questions helps
crystallize the concepts and that is when the fear of the subject is overcome.
Students tend to excel excellently in
Mathematics if they develop enthusiasm, interest and understand the concept of
the subject. This may come from the mind of the student and if otherwise the
tutor/guardian will have to help in this regard.
