Mathematics Anxiety and Preservice Elementary Teachers' Confidence to Teach Mathematics and Science

Sixty‐five preservice elementary teachers' math anxiety levels and confidence levels to teach elementary mathematics and science were measured. The confidence scores of subjects in different math anxiety groups were compared and the relationships between their math anxiety levels and confidence levels to teach mathematics and science were investigated. The results suggest that low math anxious preservice teachers are more confident to teach elementary mathematics and science than are their peers having higher levels of math anxiety. Negative correlations were found between preservice teachers' math anxiety and their confidence scores to teach elementary mathematics (r = −.638) and between preservice teachers' math anxiety and their confidence scores to teach elementary science (r = ‐.417). Also, personal math and science teaching self‐efficacy scores of participants were found to be correlated at .01 level (r =.549).