Abstract
This study examined the relationship of intelligence mindsets to math achievement for primary school students in the Chinese educational context, as well as the mediating function of math self-efficacy and failure beliefs in this relationship. Participants included 466 fifth graders (231 boys and 235 girls) from two Chinese primary schools. Results indicated that boys had significantly higher mean levels of growth mindsets and math self-efficacy than girls, whereas boys had no statistically significant differences to girls on failure beliefs and math grade. Further, intelligence mindsets had a significant positive effect on math achievement, and failure beliefs and math self-efficacy played a full mediating role in the relationship between intelligence mindsets and math achievement. Moreover, intelligence mindsets affected math achievement through the chain mediating role of failure beliefs and math self-efficacy. These above findings contribute to advance our knowledge about the underlying mechanisms through which intelligence mindsets affect math achievement, which are of great significance to students' growth and current educational practice.
Highlights
Mathematics is a very important tool subject, which occupies students’ learning life from kindergarten to university and even higher level
This study aimed to explore the influencing mechanism of intelligence mindsets on math achievement for Chinese primary school students
structural equation modeling (SEM) suggested that intelligence mindsets, math self-efficacy, and failure beliefs could all predict math achievement
Summary
Mathematics is a very important tool subject, which occupies students’ learning life from kindergarten to university and even higher level. Studies have established that a solid foundation of mathematics is essential to the professionalization of all professions. If you are not good at mathematics, it is difficult to engage in activities related to STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math), let alone engage in STEM careers (Wang and Degol, 2017). The idea that math is only for some people has deep roots in the field of mathematics. Researchers surveyed scholars in various disciplines at US universities and found that among all STEM fields, math scholars were the most extreme in emphasizing fixed, innate abilities (Leslie et al, 2015). The single belief—that math is a “gift” that some people have and others do not—is responsible for much of the widespread math failure and underachievement in the word (Boaler and Dweck, 2016)
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