Self-esteem and school achievement in mathematics: theoretical contributions to the framing of the relationship between cognition and affection

Authors

  • Izabel Hazim UFRN
  • Cristina Frade UFMG
  • Jorge Tarcísio da Rocha Falcão UFRN

Abstract

The research reported here aimed to analyze the relations between affect and cognition in school learning, focusing on mathematical learning at school. Twenty-seven elementary level (5th year) students from a public school at Recife (PE) took part in this research, which covered two stages: 1. Application of HTP Test to the participant students, aiming to identify their self-esteem levels. This procedure allowed the constitution of homog­enous and heterogeneous dyads according to gender and self-esteem level. 2. Application to the dyads of an instrument of evaluation of mathematics performance, to be solved by the students cooperatively. Data collected during these two stages were analyzed with the help of multidimensional descriptive statistical tools, which allowed the interpretation of a link between self-esteem and mathematical performance: low and high levels of self-esteem were respectively associated to low and high levels of per­formance in school mathematics. These data are discussed in terms of both theoretical and pedagogical consequences for mathematics learning.

Key-words: self-esteem; school performance in mathematics; cognition; affect.

 

 

Author Biographies

Izabel Hazim, UFRN

Doutora em Psicogia Cognitiva pela Universidade Federal de Pernambuco, linha de pesquisa neuropsicologia do desenvolvimento e da aprendizagem. Departamento de psicologia - Centro de Ciências Humanas e Artes (CCHLA)-Universdiade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte.

 

Cristina Frade, UFMG

Doutora em Educação pela UFMG, linha de pesquisa em educação matemática. Centro Pedagógico da Escola de Educação Básica e Profissional da Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais (UFMG).

Jorge Tarcísio da Rocha Falcão, UFRN

Doutor em psicologia da aprendizagem e do desenvolvimento pela Université de Paris 5/ René Descartes/ Sorbonne, linha de pesquisa em competências cognitivas complexas na escola e no trabalho. Departamento de psicologia – Centro de Ciências Humanas, Letras e Artes (CCHLA) - Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte (UFRN).

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Published

2010-05-27

How to Cite

Hazim, I., Frade, C., & Falcão, J. T. da R. (2010). Self-esteem and school achievement in mathematics: theoretical contributions to the framing of the relationship between cognition and affection. Educar Em Revista, 26(36), p. 39–54. Retrieved from https://revistas.ufpr.br/educar/article/view/17579

Issue

Vol. 26 No. 36 (2010)

Section

Dossiê Temático

License

Copyrights for articles published in Educar em Revista belong to the author, with the first publication copyrights reserved to the journal. The journal offers public access (Open Access), and its articles are of free use, with specific assignments, in educational and non-commercial applications.