Maths anxiety may be stopping students from learning useful AI and data skills

Artificial intelligence is increasingly becoming part of everyday life and work. AI can generate information, summarise evidence and perform calculations. However, it does not remove the need for critical thinking and conceptual understanding. Employers still need people who can evaluate outputs, recognise errors, interpret evidence and make decisions based on evidence. For example, an AI system might produce a convincing answer or graph. A person still needs to decide whether the information is accurate. Confidence with numbers, graphs and large data sets therefore remains essential. Yet many university students avoid quantitative subjects. This is not because they lack ability, but often because they are anxious about mathematics. Mathematics anxiety can interfere with learning, solving questions and performance. Students may experience tension, worry, shame and fear when faced with mathematics, statistics or any quantitative work. This matters because quantitative skills are not confined to mathematics degrees. Students across a wide range of disciplines are increasingly expected to interpret data. They have to evaluate research evidence and make decisions based on it. Psychology students need to analyse survey results; business students are expected to work with sales data. Anxiety, not ability One of the most persistent misconceptions is that mathematics anxiety only affects weaker students. Research suggests otherwise. Many students experiencing high levels of mathematics anxiety have the intellectual ability to succeed. They simply become trapped in cycles of fear and avoidance. As a result, students may avoid quantitative work and disengage from learning opportunities. They may lose confidence in their abilities. A student who feels anxious about mathematics may postpone submitting an assessment that requires mathematical applications. Students may avoid applying for internships that involve data analysis. Over time, this can influence their educational choices and limit future career opportunities. The implications extend beyond university classrooms. Graduates entering workplaces may well need to assess quantitative evidence and interpret numerical information. Students who avoid quantitative work because of anxiety may therefore be disadvantaged in many ways. A global educational challenge Mathematics anxiety is a global problem. International studies have highlighted its relationship with confidence, engagement and achievement in mathematics. The OECD monitors mathematics anxiety through its Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA). Across OECD countries, the proportion of students anxious about mathematics rose from 31% in 2012 to 39% in 2022. Supportive, collaborative classes can help students gain confidence. PeopleImages/Shutterstock Addressing mathematics anxiety is therefore not simply about improving examination performance. It is also about making sure students are not unnecessarily excluded from quantitative subjects and careers. My research with university students suggests that emotionally intelligent approaches based on research can moderate students’ anxiety. This can help improve confidence, build resilience, encourage autonomy and foster interest in statistics. Many students arrive at university carrying deeply ingrained beliefs about their mathematical ability. Some may remember being told they were not good at mathematics at school. A student reported her teacher’s reaction to a question: “Why are you slowing the class down?” These beliefs develop over many years. They can obstruct students’ engagement with mathematics long before they encounter complex quantitative content. This requires universities to consider students’ emotional experiences when studying quantitative courses. Supportive and compassionate learning environments can encourage students to challenge their negative beliefs. As one student reflected: I do now look forward to classes. At the beginning of the year, because I found stats really, really difficult, I thought ‘I have got to go to class, it is compulsory but I don’t really want to go because then I will have to do questions which I don’t know how to do, I have no idea in doing’. The more I practised, the more I could grapple with the content … So now I do enjoy going to classes. Promoting participation, collaboration and confidence can help students engage more positively with quantitative work. On working collaboratively in class, one student explained: I feel good sometimes because if I can’t work it out, somebody else can’t work it out, as well. So, I feel comfortable that I am not the only one who did not understand the question … somebody may have … another approach to the question. So, I think it is more interesting. It is important to help students recognise that difficulties with mathematics are normal and do not reflect a lack of ability. As universities respond to employers’ changing needs, mathematics anxiety deserves greater attention. It is not merely an individual challenge affecting a small group of students. It is a broader educational issue with implications for participation, inclusion, job prospects and social equity. Analytical thinking, data literacy and AI skills are becoming increasingly important. Considering this, we cannot afford to overlook the barriers that prevent students from developing them. Supporting students to engage confidently with quantitative work may be just as important as teaching the skills themselves.