Hi Spazz,
In some cases, this is probably true. However, by your very answer, you have inadvertently illustrated another major reason why some people are able to grasp math concepts better than others.
I was somewhat amused by the irony of your response!
Note how your answer is definitive and absolute. It is a quantitative response to a qualitative question. You are a math major, so your mind analyses the problem, and develops a formula to definitively evaluate the solution in terms of one absolute answer. Once you approached the problem in an objective, 'mathematical' way, the answer seemed immediately clear to you.
A + B = C
Taking Math + Failing Math = Laziness
However, someone with more of a qualitative approach to the question would likely come up with many alternative explanations based on many different variables.
A + B = C or maybe D, or maybe E, or perhaps F, or even maybe some combination of C, D, E, and F.
I am someone whose mind tends instinctively to evaluate problems in a qualitative rather than a quantitative way. As a result, I often have difficulty grasping math concepts. I can assure you it is not laziness, it is just that my mind works in a different way than yours. Numbers don't intuitively make sense to me, and solutions don't 'jump off the page' at me.
I can work hard and memorize various formulas, and this will more or less get me by in most math situations. However, my brain has trouble evaluating isssues in terms of absolute and definitive answers, and so math does NOT come naturally to me as it does to you. I just don't think in terms of "black" and "white". I tend to operate in terms of "grey". I see a problem and my brain instantly evaluates it in terms of 'alternatives', 'options', 'variables', 'causality', 'reasons'. This doesn't work too well in math-type subjects where there is usually only one correct solution to any given problem.
Does that make sense at all?
When you evaluated the problem: "Why do people fail math?", your mind immediately took a quantitative approach to finding the solution.
Taking Math + Failing Math = Laziness
That clearly illustrates a key difference in the way different people's minds operate.
Of course your answer is correct in some cases, but not in all cases. There are many developmental, social, economic, psychological, and biological variables that factor into why someone might fail at math.
Laziness is only ONE of any number of answers. The fact that you didn't catch that is probably one reason why you excel at math.
I absolutely agree that effort, commitment, and hard work are important indicators of future excellence at math, or any other subject. But there are also a myriad of reasons why effort, commitment, and hard work might still not result in excellence.
To ignore those other reasons is to illustrate my point. Therein lies the irony of your initial response!
When it comes to passing math exams, I envy your quantitative reasoning skills. But there is more to life than black and white. As you provide much-needed support and guidance to the math students at your university, try not to overlook the "grey". You will likely be a better teacher, and your students will benefit greatly from your empathy and insight.
Kudos to you for your willingness to help others succeed.
I wish you well,
Snazzlefrag