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Affective States of University Developmental Mathematics Students and their Impact on Self-Efficacy, Belonging, Career Identity, Success and Persistence

International Journal of Research in Undergraduate Mathematics Education volume 5, pages 337–358 (2019)Cite this article

Abstract

The identification of factors that impact student success in mathematics courses has been a focus of a great deal of research since the early 2000s. The role of classroom approaches, teacher beliefs, and underlying student backgrounds have been studied in different ways. As a part of this effort researchers have studied the degree to which personality factors and affect contribute to (or mitigate) a student’s level of effective engagement. In this work we present the results from the first semester of a two-year study of the role of anxiety, personality factors and self-efficacy in student success and career planning for a cohort of students entering a developmental mathematics course at the university level. We quantify the impact of anxiety on success and grade outcomes, as well as identify a personality factor interacting with success in a surprising way. We provide initial data regarding the students’ sense of belonging in STEM disciplines and their self-efficacy levels, and then analyse their career planning patterns.

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Acknowledgements

This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant No. (DUE 1544011).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Mathematics, West Virginia University, 320 Armstrong Hall, PO Box 6310, Morgantown, WV, 26505, USA

    Jessica Deshler & Marjorie Darrah

  2. Department of Mathematics STEM Transformation Institute, Florida International University, 11200 SW 8th Street, Miami, FL, 33199, USA

    Edgar Fuller

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  1. Jessica Deshler
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  2. Edgar Fuller
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  3. Marjorie Darrah
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Correspondence to Jessica Deshler.

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Deshler, J., Fuller, E. & Darrah, M. Affective States of University Developmental Mathematics Students and their Impact on Self-Efficacy, Belonging, Career Identity, Success and Persistence. Int. J. Res. Undergrad. Math. Ed. 5, 337–358 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40753-019-00096-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40753-019-00096-3

Keywords

  • Self-efficacy
  • Belonging
  • Anxiety
  • Persistence
  • Affect
  • Developmental mathematics