Factors that Affect College Students ’ Attitudes toward Mathematics

Most people have heard the age-old saying, “attitude is the key to success”. Various quotes can be retrieved that subscribe to this philosophy. In education, research suggests that student attitudes toward a subject lead to academic success (Popham, 2005; Royster, Harris, & Schoeps, 1999). Generally speaking, mathematics is a subject that is often disliked, begging researchers to investigate how mathematics attitude affects mathematics learning. Further, I believe that student attitudes and achievement hold some implications concerning the types of mathematics courses offered and which department ultimately provides them for the students. Business and engineering majors are required to complete at least one semester of calculus at most universities. Currently, mathematics departments offer mathematics classes focusing on applications in specific areas and majors, such as business and engineering. If every other department wants a mathematics course that focuses on specific applications for their degrees, they may start offering their own mathematics courses. This, of course, could be detrimental to mathematics departments. This study investigates college students ’ attitudes toward mathematics. Whil