Exploring Gender Disparities in Maths Anxiety: A Comparative Analysis of Game-Based Learning Competitions
Closed project
Project Information
Mode
Internal
Study As
Full Time
Principal Supervisor
Dr Florence Gabriel
Main Campus
City West
Applications Closed
2/06/2024
Study Level
PhD
Applications Open To
This project is open to applications from both Domestic and International applicants.
Tuition Fees:
All domestic students are eligible for a fee waiver. International students who receive a stipend are eligible for a fee waiver. Find out more about fees and conditions.
Project Stipend:
$32,500 available for eligible applicants
Narrow the gender gap in maths anxiety
If you are seeking to advance a career in the education & training industry and passionate about increasing female participation in STEM subjects, the University of South Australia – Australia’s University of Enterprise – is offering a hands-on project-based PhD within the Centre for Change and Complexity in Learning (C3L).
About this project
In the middle years of maths education, gender disparities in maths anxiety become clearly apparent. This can cause gender imbalance in STEM subjects, particularly in mathematics. It is essential to foster more equitable learning experiences for both genders to encourage increased female participation and success in STEM subjects and subsequently the STEM workforce.
Digital game-based learning (GBL) environments such as Minecraft: Education Edition provide an authentic environment for students to explore mathematics and improve self-efficacy. The competitive activities in Minecraft lead to higher motivation and retention of knowledge, despite also increasing intrinsic cognitive load.
In these digital environments, the participant enacts role-taking and constructs their sense of self and identity within the subject. This is particularly motivating for girls, who historically disengage with STEM subjects due to a lack of perceived identity.
Our project will investigate the impact of competition on maths anxiety in middle school, with a focus on gender differences. We will integrate a GBL environment, leveraging the immersive context of Minecraft to establish experimental conditions of virtual and real competition. This approach will provide a dynamic and engaging platform to evaluate how different types of competition impact maths anxiety and related factors among middle school students.
We aspire to narrow the gender gap in maths anxiety and elevate overall maths performance, fostering a more balanced learning environment for both male and female students.
We also aim to provide educators with valuable insights into the impact of virtual and real competition on maths anxiety, facilitating the development of targeted interventions and instructional strategies that consider gender-specific factors.
What you'll do
In this project-based research degree, you will gather relevant data, creating and distributing questionnaires and standardised surveys. You will disseminate findings through research publications, contributing academic articles and conference presentations, and through evidence-based educational guidelines, offering practical strategies to mitigate maths anxiety and promote gender equality in maths learning environments.
Additionally, you’ll conduct workshops for educators to facilitate the seamless integration of game-based learning strategies, with a specific focus on understanding gender-specific considerations in maths education.
Upon graduation, you will be equipped with in-demand skills and abilities in an important field of research.
Where you'll be based
You will be based in the Centre for Change and Complexity in Learning (C3L), which focuses on the complex relationship between human and artificial cognition, how it changes society, knowledge processes, and teaching and learning.
The C3L uses complexity science methodologies, promotes the uptake of applied research and engages with the community, government agencies (healthcare, education, defence, cultural) and industry to research the lifespan of learning and the role of UniSA in serving all stages of knowledge and learning processes.
We focus on four key research streams: change in complex systems, infrastructures for AI, human and artificial cognition, and learning analytics.
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