Emotions and Math

“But I’m not a therapist…I’m a math teacher!” I can hear you say it. And you are right. Nonetheless, whether you are a therapist or not, the emotions in your math class are not going away. So how can a math teacher who is not a therapist deal with emotions? First of all, you don’t have to be a therapist, just a human, to deal with your own emotions. Do that first. However, to deal with the emotions in your students, enlist all the help you need. Other people in your program may be very useful in this case—a counselor, or someone who teaches study skills, or does student support, for example. Ask one of them to do a session with your class on any one of the following topics, and, since you’re bringing them to the math class, ask them to put a “math spin” on their presentation: ƒ Positive “self talk” ƒ Stress management ƒ Maintaining a positive relationship with your instructor ƒ Becoming a successful student ƒ Test anxiety It’s important that you attend the sessions as well. Your presence sends the message that you think the material is important to the math course; that you respect the person giving the presentation; that you want to hear what your students have to say during the session; that you believe there will be a carry-over into the math classes and you want to be part of the carry-over. Your absence sends the opposite message.

An important strand of my teaching philosophy is to deal with emotions, my own and the students’, so they don’t get in the way of the learning. This comes partly from my training as a Life Skills Coach (Saskatchewan NewStart Model). My coach trainer, Audrey Adilman, used to say that it will probably take less than a minute to acknowledge the emotions that come up in the moment; that if you leave it for an hour, it might take two minutes to deal with them; if you leave it until the next day it might take half an hour, and if you leave it for longer, who knows how long it will take? How does expressing our feelings help? It helps us keep control of our emotions, helps us identify problems, and helps us maintain clarity in our relationships with other people.

According to the Life Skills lesson on expressing feelings (Core lessons for life skills programs, 2004), saying “I’m frustrated” or “I’m mad” or “I’m happy,” releases the hold the emotion has on you a little, so that you can concentrate on other things, and think and act rather than just emote. Maintaining control over emotions is helpful in the classroom where so many people are working in a public space. Certainly as an instructor, I’m happy when people can control their emotions so I don’t have to control the people. I’d much rather someone say, “I’m really frustrated when I keep getting these questions wrong,” instead of slamming his books down and stamping out, swearing under his breath, or out loud. Furthermore, a student who can say what is bothering him may be able to go on working, or ask for help, or use some strategy he has for dealing with stress or anger.

Sometimes a problem shows itself first in a feeling—we notice our muscles are tense, or our palms are sweaty, before we can articulate what is wrong. Paying attention to feelings can help us identify problems: “Every time you mention denominators, the pit of my stomach falls out.” “Whenever you lean over to look at my work, I stop breathing.” Such feelings help pinpoint a problem, and identifying a problem is the first step in solving it.

Expressing a feeling, and owning it as our own, helps maintain clear relationships with others. If I am worried, but don’t say so, the worry may look like anger to someone else—withdrawal, blank stare, drawn-in shoulders, silence, holding my breath. If a student looks at those behaviors and assumes I’m angry, suddenly I have two problems—the thing I was originally worried about and a relationship with a student that needs to be repaired. If I can say, “I’m worried because I’m not sure if we can get this whole activity finished in the time we've got left, and it won’t be good to leave it half-done until Monday,” then the student is clear that I’m not angry at him, and I have only one problem to deal with—a scheduling problem, not a relationship problem.

If you are uncomfortable dealing with students’ emotions, or with encouraging them to express their emotions, keep in mind that the emotions are still there, even if everyone is ignoring them. It may help if you acknowledge possible feelings to the class, without singling out any particular person. For example, you might say, “I can see some of you look puzzled right now. If you are feeling confused, hang on. I think the next activity will help sort things out.” If a student is able to say, “I’m confused right now,” the expression of the feeling releases it, and leaves a calmer space for paying attention to your assurances that help is at hand. If you express out loud your awareness that some people may be confused, you may accomplish the same thing for some students. On the other hand, if you notice the puzzled looks, and go on to a new explanation or to the next activity, without acknowledging the confusion, the students who are dealing with the emotion will not be able to give their full attention to the activity that you hope will clarify the confusion. Expressing the feeling helps the situation, no matter who does the expressing. Students who would be unwilling or unable to express their confusion may also be served by your acknowledgement of it. You will see smiles and nods to confirm your expression.