Mathematics Anxiety as a Gateway to Learner Agency and Confidence Building
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.22934774Keywords:
confidence building, learner agency, latent profile analysis, mathematical confidence, mathematics anxiety, secondary learnersAbstract
This study investigated how mathematics anxiety functioned as a gateway to understanding learner agency and mathematical confidence among secondary learners in San Pablo, Isabela. A cross-sectional person-centered explanatory design was employed involving 306 secondary learners selected through proportionate stratified random sampling. Data were gathered using an adapted questionnaire measuring mathematics anxiety, learner agency, and mathematical confidence. Descriptive statistics, Latent Profile Analysis, and the Bolck-Croon-Hagenaars three-step procedure were used to identify anxiety profiles and compare outcomes across groups. Results revealed three distinct profiles: Low-Anxiety Secure, Moderate Evaluative Anxiety, and High Pervasive Anxiety. The Moderate Evaluative Anxiety group represented the largest proportion of learners, indicating that anxiety was especially pronounced during assessment situations. Significant differences were found in learner agency and mathematical confidence across the three profiles. Learners in the Low-Anxiety Secure profile demonstrated the highest levels of agency and confidence, while those in the High Pervasive Anxiety profile recorded the lowest levels in both outcomes. Mathematical confidence showed the strongest decline as anxiety intensified. The findings indicated that mathematics anxiety was not a uniform learner experience but a differentiated condition associated with meaningful variations in students' sense of capability and participation in mathematics learning. The study recommends differentiated classroom support, reduced evaluative pressure, structured opportunities for learner decision-making, and targeted confidence-building interventions for students experiencing persistent mathematics anxiety.
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