Treating trainee teacher's mathematical anxiety by using Game-Based Learning: a case study

Abstract

This study aims to track and manage the mathematical anxiety of a group of trainee teachers. To this purpose, Game-Based Learning experiences were implemented by replacing conventional practical sessions throughout an academic year. Once the practical sessions were translated into games, no significant differences were obtained in terms of academic performance. Instead, they mainly affected the overall reduction of anxiety shown towards mathematics assessment (-10.6%) and numerical tasks (-8.4%). The study makes evident an improvement in mathematics anxiety, being significant enough to consider that the gamification of tasks and the gamification of assessments are procedures that contribute positively to the training of future mathematics teachers.