Kids: "Maths Too Geeky"

By Hannah Isom

The fear of being labelled a geek is stopping kids taking up maths. That’s according to new research which suggests that people see mathematicians as old, white, middle-class men without a life.

It is thought that these preconceptions are the product of the way mathematicians are portrayed in popular culture.

The survey found that the number of people in England and Wales choosing to study maths has been steadily falling for the past decade, and people view the obsession with mathematics as abnormal. Unsurprisingly, however, students studying maths at A-level or degree level are more likely to view this obsession as showing skill and commitment than madness.

Mathematicians are only white middle-class men? Where could such a stereotype be coming from? Take a look at mathematicians on the silver screen.

Some of the students surveyed even went so far as to display geek pride, by giving a positive value to the geek status.

Dr Heather Mendick, who led the study, said: “This raises two important issues: first, we can see how popular culture is deterring many people from enjoying maths and wanting to carry on with it and, second, it raises issues in relation to social justice as these images are mainly of white, middle-class men and so may discourage other groups disproportionately.”

Get more from Hannah.

Maths on the Null is gooood, take a peek: