EFFECT OF CLASSICAL INSTRUMENTAL BACKGROUND MUSIC VOLUME ON PERFORMANCE IN ALGEBRA TESTS, SELF-EFFICACY, AND TEST ANXIETY OF

COLLEGE STUDENTSBy

John Bosco Osimbo Namwamba(SUBR)

&Samuel Eweni

(SUNO)

STATEMENT OF PROBLEM• Mathematics anxiety is widespread, with high varying reported rates

(Zaslavsky 1994). Negative myths about mathematics may contribute to this anxiety (Preis & Biggs 2001) and hence lead to a state of low confidence among students (Zopp 1999).

• Self-efficacy and mathematics anxiety are also among the variables that affect students’ goals and performances in mathematics (Hall & Ponton, 2005).

• Recent research has also show that stressful environments could cause and increase mathematics anxiety, hence affecting their ability in solving mathematics problems (Beilock, 2008).

• No research has been carried out to address possible use of background music to alleviate mathematics test anxiety and its impact on test scores.

Significance of Study• Existing research is inconclusive about the correlation between volume of

classical instrumental music, mathematics examination anxiety, self-efficacy and performance on tests and yet it is common to see students studying and doing their college assignments while music plays in the background.

• This study shaded light on the correlation between volume of music, anxiety, self-efficacy and performance in mathematics examination. If this study found that the volume of instrumental classical music had positively influence on achievement in mathematics tests (examinations) in the group of students under study, the study could be extended to other courses to assess its success.

• This study attempted to develop models for predicting achievement in mathematics examinations sat by students while background music is played. Colleges could apply the findings of this study to ameliorate performance in mathematics and hence and improve college graduation rates.

Objectives of the Study

• Research shows that music relaxes stressed minds (Hjortseberg, 2009).

• The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of loudness of instrumental classical music on students’ mathematics test anxiety, performance in mathematics tests and self-efficacy score during testing in algebra while listening to music at different volume levels and to compare the results with those of students sitting for same tests under silent conditions.

Research Questions and Hypothesis

This study addressed the following research questions: -

• 1. Is the loudness of background classical instrumental music played during a class test, test a significant variable in predicting mathematics self-efficacy?

• 2. Does loudness of background classical instrumental music played during a class test have differential effects on mathematics test anxiety of college students as compared to no music during testing?

• 3. Does loudness background classical instrumental music played during a class test have differential effects on students’ mathematics test self-efficacy?

• 4. Does loudness of background classical instrumental music played during a class test have differential effects on students’ performance in mathematics test?

HYPOTHESES• Hypothesis 1H0: Null hypothesis: There is no significant relationship

between volume of background classical instrumental music played in test room during test and mathematics self-efficacy.

• Hypothesis 2H0: Null hypothesis: There is no significant difference (associated with volume of instrumental classical music played for 10 minutes before algebra test) between experimental groups’’ and the control group mathematics pretest anxiety means scores as measured by the MARS.

• Hypothesis 3 H0: Null hypothesis: There is no significant difference between the means of control and experimental groups’ mathematics self efficacy scores.

• Hypothesis 4 H0: Null hypothesis: There is no statistically significant difference between the means of algebra test scores collected during the experiment for experimental and control groups.

Assumptions

In this study the following were assumed

• The students wee very honest when filling the surveys

• That students worked diligently during the tests

• Participants have similar noise sensitivity level

• That the level of mathematics of participating students do not have significant effect on outcomes of the experiments.

• The sample drawn for the research are representative of the population from which they will be drawn from.

Limitations of the Study

• The population and sample sizes

• The type of music provided by the experimenter

• Variation in noise sensitivity levels among different individuals

• • Level of mathematics attained by participants

THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK

Research shows that a negative relationship exists between math achievement and math anxiety at all levels of education. The relationship is more defined at college level of education (Ma, 1999).

Test anxiety is widespread, affecting almost 35% of the college student population, with approximately 18% being handicapped by high test anxiety while additional 16% being handicapped by moderately high test anxiety (Driscoll et al, 2005).

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THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK

Highly anxious students score approximately 12 percentile points less than those with low anxiety.

During exams, the highly anxious students have high likelihood to engage in negative, self-deprecatory thoughts about themselves and about the consequences of test (Lee, 1999).

The working memory gets occupied partially by these thoughts, hence restricting its storage and processing capacity (Dutke & Stober, 2001).

THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK

Negative thoughts of this kind create a negative mindset, initiating a vicious cycle of negativity thus increasing anxiety.

Music is known to affect the listener through sympathetic resonance.

This was supported by a study where students were able to relax during an examination session when music was played to them (Lai, 2004).

THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK

Presently support for music intervention for lowering anxiety levels in various clinical situations has been on the rise (Lai, 2008).

In this research, instrumental soft classical music is used in an attempt to lower mathematics test anxiety of students in examination class.

As a result of reduction in anxiety levels, the students are expected to perform better in mathematics test.

METHODOLOGY

To address the research questions the following procedure was carried out.

The researcher drew and randomly assigned the experimental units (students from the class) to one of five treatments and the response value from each unit is determined.

The five treatments consisted of five different instrumental classical music volume levels ranging from a maximum of 79 decibels (background sound included) to lowest volume level of classical instrumental music (zero decibels)

Study Design and Experiment

METHODOLOGY

The group that did the test at lowest level of background music served as the control group in the study.

The mean of the numerical response being studied was then compared across the different treatment groups.

To investigate whether there was difference in means for responses of interest among the sample groups; the researcher used one-way Analysis of Variance (ANOVA).

Study Design

METHODOLOGY

Participants

The subjects in this study were 30 undergraduate engineering students enrolled in Mechanical Engineering Design MEEN 221, a mathematics course offered at a Historically Black University located in the southern part of USA.

The students consisted of seven females and 23 males respectively.

Twenty six of the students were seniors while four were juniors. The age range of participants was 18-30 years.

METHODOLOGY

Students from a class were randomly drawn and assigned to five groups consisting of one control and four experimental

Each student was assigned a number with which to code the tests and surveys in order to ensure confidentiality while maintaining a link among the data for analysis.

The importance of the respondents’ contribution to the study was emphasized by the researcher so as to encourage the respondents to be candid.

Experimental Procedure and Instrumentation

METHODOLOGY

Experiments were started at the approximately same time at experimental conditions in the following order; filling demographic data, filling the MARS instrument survey form, filling the mathematics self-efficacy instrument form and commencing to answer questions from the algebra ability test.

• In order to determine the mathematics anxiety levels of the participants, the participants were be requested to complete the 25-item MARS (Haynes, 2003) before sitting for the test in order to determine their pre-test mathematics anxiety level(appendix VI).

Experimental Procedure and Instrumentation

METHODOLOGY

Before responding to the self-efficacy instrument’ questions, the students had to peruse quickly through the algebra ability instrument so as to be able to gauge their confidence in answering the questions posed in the test.

To evaluate the effect of loudness of instrumental classical music on the students’ algebra achievement, the students answered questions from the AAI (Algebra Ability Instrument), an instrument composed of twelve problems.

Experimental Procedure and Instrumentation

METHODOLOGY

This was done by use of a mathematics test that was not in multiple choices format.

It is argued that multiple choice questions may not be able to examine a student’s depth of knowledge while at the same time allowing the student to perform well by taking advantage of test smartness (Lukhele, 1994).

Reliability coefficient was found to be greater than 0.85.

Experimental Procedure and Instrumentation

Determination of Mathematics Achievement

METHODOLOGY

• In order to determine the mathematics anxiety levels of the participants, the participants were requested to complete the 25-item MARS (Haynes, 2003)

• This instrument’s design was based on the belief that math anxiety was a function of math test and anxiety about executing math tasks or taking math courses (Alexander & Martray, 1989, p. 144).

Experimental Procedure and Instrumentation

Determination of Mathematics Test Anxiety

Test-retest after two weeks of the abbreviated (25-item) scale was found to be 0.86.

An internal consistency alpha coefficient 0.96 was computed for the 25-item MARS was determined using pre-exam MARS scores.

METHODOLOGY

Experimental Procedure and Instrumentation

Determination of Mathematics Test Anxiety

METHODOLOGY

• For this study, mathematics test self-efficacy was measured by using ten items that measure expectations in mathematics performance.

• It was designed to measure student confidence in their ability to succeed on mathematical tasks and is based on research by Bandura and Pajares (1996).

• in different researches (Schwarzer, 2003, Scholz, 2002 and Luszczynska, 2005) and found to be reliable.

Experimental Procedure and Instrumentation Determination of Mathematics Test Self Efficacy

METHODOLOGY

• Updated guidelines on making this instrument were by Bandura (Bandura, 2006).

• Before responding to the self-efficacy instrument’ questions, the students had to peruse quickly through the algebra ability instrument so as to be able to gauge their confidence in answering the questions posed in the test.

• Mathematics Test Self-Efficacy data was collected through having the students respond to this instrument

Experimental Procedure and Instrumentation Determination of Mathematics Test Self Efficacy

RESULTS

Hypothesis 1 H0:

• To determine whether to accept or not to accept Hypothesis 1 H0, regression analysis was carried out on data for volume of classical instrumental music and mathematics self-efficacy data.

• Results from analysis of data with volume expressed in scale showed that the slope of regression was significant (Table 1). (p = .001). Hence the null hypothesis was not accepted.

• However only 37.2% of the data could be explained by the regression line in Figure 1. These results suggest that 37.2% of the of thee variation can be explained by the line.

• According to the results, an increase of classical instrumental music by one decibel, was associated with decrease in mathematics test self efficacy of magnitude .674.

Hypothesis 1 Contd

Hypothesis 1 Contd

Hypothesis 2 H0:

• The null hypothesis 2 H0 was rejected since the difference between experimental groups’ and the control group’s mathematics pretest anxiety scores as measured by the MARS was significant (p=0.038) as shown in table 2.

• Hence there was significant difference (associated with volume of instrumental classical music played for 10 minutes before algebra test) between experimental groups’’ and the control group mathematics pretest anxiety means scores as measured by the MARS.

•

Hypothesis 3 H0:

• Null hypothesis: There will be no significant differences between the means of control and experimental groups’ mathematics self-efficacy scores.

• This hypothesis 3 H0 was tested by running an ANOVA test on the data.

No statistically significant difference in mathematics self-efficacy scores ---- was found between the control and treatment groups (p=0.984) as shown in Table 3. Hence hypothesis 3 was not supported by this result.

Hypothesis 4 H0:

Null hypothesis: There will is statistical significant difference

between the means of algebra test scores collected during the experiment for experimental and control.

An ANOVA test was run on the data to test hypothesis 4 H0.

The results in table 4 do not support this hypothesis (p=0.048).

Post hoc tests revealed the details of differences in means as having occurred between, group with music level 0 and level 3, level 0 and level 4, and level1 and level 4 (Table 5).

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