Examining the relationship between metacognitive awareness and mathematics teaching anxiety of prospective mathematics teachers

In this study, the relationship between pre-service mathematics teachers' metacognitive awareness and their mathematics teaching anxiety levels and it was investigated whether these levels differ according to the class and gender variables. The method of the research is the quantitative method, and the model is the general survey, which includes singular and relational screening. The research was carried out with a total of 298 Primary and Secondary Education Mathematics Teacher Candidates, 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th grades in the education faculty of a state university in the Central Anatolia Region, in the 2021-2022 academic year, and analyzes were made by considering the data of 279 participants. As a data collection tool, personal information form, the "Anxiety Scale for Teaching Mathematics" (MÖYKÖ) developed by Peker (2006) and "Metacognitive Awareness Inventory" developed by Schraw and Dennison (1994); adapted by Akın, Abacı and Çetin (2007) to Turkish as "Üstbilişsel Farkındalık Envanteri" (ÜFE) was applied. Percentage and frequency distribution, independent sample t-test, one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA), Pearson product-moment correlation coefficient calculation and simple linear regression analysis were used in the analysis of the data. Analyzes were made with the SPSS 18 package program. According to the findings obtained from the research, the metacognitive awareness levels of the candidates are at a high level. No significant difference was found in the general total of metacognitive awareness level according to gender and grade level variable. Differences were found in some of the sub-dimensions. It was determined that the pre-service teachers' mathematics teaching anxiety was low, and according to gender, the mathematics teaching anxiety of the female teacher candidates was higher than that of the boys. While no significant difference was found in the general sum of anxiety according to grade level, a difference was found in some of the sub-dimensions. A negative and significant relationship was found between pre-service mathematics teachers' metacognitive awareness levels and their anxiety levels towards teaching mathematics. Finally, the level of metacognitive awareness alone predicts 21% of the variation in mathematics teaching anxiety level.