Aspectos emocionais no processo de aprendizagem de matemática

Abstract

This research aimed at investigating how emotional aspects can influence the learning process of Mathematics in the final grades of Elementary School. With that purpose, a qualitative research was carried out with students at a municipal public school in Caxias do Sul – RS. The corpus of the research was constituted from the transcripts of semi structured interviews with 15 students of the school. Data were analyzed according to Discourse Text Analysis proposed by Moraes and Galiazzi. Theoretical support for the study is based on concepts regarding Mathematics, learning, mathematical education and emotional aspects, having Vygotsky as its major reference. It was observed that emotional aspects do influence learning, especially through the relationship established with teachers, the relationship established with classmates; through the influence coming from their family and from Society, and through physical and behavioral reactions. It was also observed that a positive relationship between students and teachers favor learning process, as well as a good relationship with the classmates. A highlight of the study was the socializing dimension of school and the importance of living with others for children and teenagers’ development. It was noticed that family members’ opinion reflects on the relationship that the student establishes with his studies and on his thoughts about the importance of Mathematics. One perception that outstood was the one related to Mathematics being useful in the future, in a profession or in higher education. However, students had difficulty to recognize utility in Mathematics nowadays which would go beyond simple calculations at the market. It was also noticed that it is necessary that teachers can recognize their students’ emotional reaction so as to orient them on how to deal with their emotions. Without any intention of exhausting the discussions on this study, what was intended was to develop a research that could contribute for the reflections about education, especially mathematical education. A countless number of discussions can still take place concerning emotional aspects involved in learning Mathematics, since emotions are important part of the whole learning process.