Saturday, April 10, 2010

Gender and the Achievement Gap

Christine Beecher
Fundamentals of Curriculum
Dr. Jay Dugan
April 15, 2010

One of the hot topics in education today is the achievement gap that is occurring between males and females. As I was researching, I found that this is a hot topic globally. There are journal articles that were written by professionals in England, New Zealand, and Australia that discuss this educational gap that begins to occur between males and females as they complete their schooling.

Throughout the history of education, it seems that as students begin their educational journey, the playing field is equal. Males and females tend to perform equally as well on standardized tests and report cards. As they move into the upper elementary grades and beyond, we begin to see two distinct gaps in achievement that occur between male and female students. The first is that females begin to surpass their male counterparts on standardized tests and report card grades. As they reach graduation, females receive higher grades, attain more college scholarships, and have a higher percentage attending college than their male peers. The second gap occurs in the fields of mathematics and science. As males progress through their educational career, they begin to surpass the female students in math and science. Males attain higher test and report card scores in these subject areas, and outnumber females in the number of students studying these subjects in college.

Richard Coley, director of the Educational Testing Service, wrote an article titled “Differences in the gender gap: Comparisons across racial/ethnic groups in education and work” (2001). Coley used a nationally representative sample of students at three grade levels, 4th/8th/12th, and analyzed their results on various standardized tests. He found the following results:
 Reading – In 4th grade females scored higher than males across all racial and ethnic groups. This gap continued to widen through 8th and 12th grades.
 Writing – In 4th grade females scored higher than males across all racial and ethnic groups. This gap continued to widen through 8th and 12th grades.
 Science – In 4th grade there were no statistically significant score differences between males and females in all ethnic and racial groups. In 8th grade, white males scored higher than white females, but there were no statistically significant score differences between males and females in the other ethnic/racial groups. In 12th grade, white and Hispanic males scored higher than their female counterparts. There were no statistically significant score differences between males and females in the black and Asian groups.
 Mathematics – In 4th grade, white males outscored white females, but there were no statistically significant score differences between males and females in the other ethnic/racial groups. In 8th and 12th grades, there were no statistically significant score differences between males and females in all ethnic/ racial groups.

According to an article written in the Australian Journal of Education (2008), intelligence is not a factor that contributes to the achievement gap between males and females. They find that one of the major factors that contribute to the differences in educational achievement is the classroom behaviors of males and females. Females tend to stay focused, remain on task and follow all classroom and school norms and rules. Males tend to be inattentive, restless, distractible, aggressive, antisocial, and oppositional in the classroom and school building. They trace these differences in behavior to several factors: biological factors, gender theories, and school factors.

Some explanations say that educational differences between males and females can be linked to biological factors, such as brain organization, hormones and genetics. All of these factors are shown to affect behavior and ability. Kimora and Hampson (1994) found that fluctuations in testosterone and estrogen had a direct correlation to test scores. Other studies have proven that there is a definite difference in the structure and function of the brain between genders. These differences can account for variations in behavior and achievement.

Various gender theories state that males and females enter school with a different set of behaviors, attitudes and values. These differences are a result of various life situations, such as child rearing and peer relationships. Boys are raised much different than girls. They are expected to be strong and tough. They are usually given more leniency and are not put under the parental microscope as much as girls. Because of this, they do not walk the straight and narrow as much as girls. This attitude tends to spill over into the school and classroom which causes them to get into trouble more often.

Girls and boys tend to interact with their peers very differently. While girls can be caddy at times, their friendships tend to be strong and loyal. They are too busy talking about the latest fashion trends and the cute boy down the street to be worried about how their friends are doing in school. Boys, on the other hand, are totally different. Boys tend to be ridiculed and belittled by their peers about every aspect of their life including academics. In order to save face with their peers, boys will act out in class, talk back to authority, pretend not to care about their grades, and stop doing their work. This, in turn, affects their academic achievement.

Research has shown that schools are not blameless in this situation. Some people theorize that certain school factors attribute to males’ educational decline. First, they say that schools seem to be teaching more to a female’s learning style than a male’s. Second, it seems that school and classroom rules tend to cater more to female behavioral tendencies. Third, due to a lack of male teachers, there are no male educational role models for the male students. Lastly, competitiveness, which helps engage the inner drive of males, is rejected in most classrooms.

The Department for Children, Schools, and Families has found research that proves that the gender gap in education has begun to decrease as far as females are concerned. Female students are beginning to achieve higher on standardized tests in math and science. They are also attaining better grades on their report cards in these subject areas. More girls are pursuing degrees in the math and science fields and attaining jobs after graduation. Boys, however, continue to fall behind in the fields of English and the languages. One theory is that boys see these subjects as “girly” because they express feelings and explore personal experiences. Because of this, they tend to shy away from these subject areas.

Through my research I have found that the educational system has made great strides in attempting to close this achievement gap. It seems that we are succeeding where female students are concerned. However, we still have our work cut out for us with male students. Until we, as educators, find a way to overcome the academic biases that male students perceive, we will never truly tackle the gender achievement gap.

No comments:

Post a Comment