Changes in seventh-grade students’ mathematics anxiety across fraction lessons using the GASING method: An analysis of repeated reflective journals

Asrida Sigiro; Tina Hayati Dahlan; Ade Gafar Abdullah; Mubiar Agustin; Idat Muqodas

doi:10.58524/jasme.v6i4.1655

Authors

Asrida Sigiro Universitas Pendidikan Indonesia, Indonesia https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6298-0951
Tina Hayati Dahlan Universitas Pendidikan Indonesia, Indonesia
Ade Gafar Abdullah Universitas Pendidikan Indonesia, Indonesia https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8917-2375
Mubiar Agustin Universitas Pendidikan Indonesia, Indonesia https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1451-2405
Idat Muqodas Universitas Pendidikan Indonesia, Indonesia https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8115-1681

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.58524/jasme.v6i4.1655

Keywords:

Control-Value Theory, Fraction Learning, Mathematics Anxiety, Qualitative Content Analysis, Reflective Journals

Abstract

Background: Existing mathematics anxiety research provides limited evidence on session-by-session emotional changes and students' explanations of anxiety during fraction learning.

Aims: This study examined changes in seventh-grade students' mathematics anxiety and their underlying emotional appraisals during fraction instruction using the GASING method.

Method: A qualitative descriptive study with repeated observations involved 19 seventh-grade students from a private junior high school in Bandung, Indonesia. Across six sessions, 97 reflective journals containing 485 written responses were collected using five situational questions. Directed content analysis, informed by Control-Value Theory, examined temporal patterns. An independent coder assessed 20.6% of responses, yielding substantial intercoder agreement (Cohen's κ = 0.75).

Results: Evaluation-related anxiety was most prominent, with anxiety-related explanations decreasing from 76% during the first three sessions to 15% during the final three. Meanwhile, competence-related explanations increased from 14% to 57%. Individual trajectories varied, with some students reporting persistent anxiety or fatigue.

Conclusion: Declining evaluation-related anxiety coincided with increasing expressions of perceived competence, without establishing causality. Repeated reflective journals documented temporal variations and individual differences in students' emotional responses, supporting their potential application in formative mathematics assessment.

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