1. 1 Psychology 320: Gender Psychology Lecture 42

2. 2 Education: 1. Do males and females perform similarly in school?

3. 3 Do males and females perform similarly in school? Prior to the 1980s, males outperformed females in school. Today, however, females outperform males in school. This conclusion is evidenced by several lines of evidence:

4. 4 High School Grade Point Average by Sex, 1990- 2005 (US Department of Education, 2007) GPA

5. 5 High School Drop Out Rates by Sex, 1990-2005 (Statistics Canada, 2005) Thousands

6. 6 University Enrollment by Sex, 1990-2005 (Statistics Canada, 2009) Thousands

7. 7 Number of Undergraduate Degrees Granted by Sex, 1995-2005 (Statistics Canada, 2008) Thousands

8. 8 Number of Graduate Degrees Granted by Sex, 1995-2005 (Statistics Canada, 2008)* Thousands * Master’s and doctorate degrees combined; more females than males earn master’s degrees; more males than females earn doctorate degrees.

9. 9 Percentage of 25-29 Year Olds in the Labour Force with a University Degree by Sex, 1981-2001 (Statistics Canada, 2007) Percentage with University Degree

10. 10 Percentage of 25-29 Year Olds with a University Degree by Sex and Ethnicity, 1971-2006 (US Department of Education, 2007) 10 Percentage with University Degree

11. 11 Major Field of StudyNumber of Females (Thousands) Number of Males (Thousands) Education, recreational and counselling services528233 Fine and applied arts7741 Humanities285201 Social sciences394336 Agricultural, biological, nutritional and food services10797 Health professions281135 Commerce, management and business administration 321427 Applied science technologies and trades39 Engineering and applied sciences71394 Mathematics, computer and physical sciences109229 Major Field of Study, Age 15 and Older, by Sex (Statistics Canada, 2001)

12. 12 Although females outperform males in school, males perform equally to or outperform females in some domains on standardized tests:  Programme for International Student Assessment Test, 2006, 15-year-olds (Statistics Canada, 2006) Reading: F > M (33 points). Science: M = F (general; “using scientific evidence”); M > F (“explaining phenomena scientifically,” 17 points); F > M (“identifying scientific issues,” 14 points). Math: M > F (14 points).

13. 13  Scholastic Aptitude Test, 2007-2008 (US Department of Education, 2009) Reading: M > F (4 points) Math: M > F (6 points)  National Assessment of Education Progress, 2008, 17-year olds (US Department of Education, 2009) Math: M > F (33 points) Reading: F > M (11 points) Writing: F > M (13 points)

14. 14 The finding that females outperform males in school has led a number of writers to argue that there is a “boy crisis” in the school system: Kindlon & Thompson (1999): Raising cain: Protecting the emotional life of boys. Lewin (1998): How boys lost out to girl power. Basow (2008): Gender socialization, or how long a way has baby come? Sommers (2000): The war against boys.

15. 15 Socioeconomic status and ethnicity are more important predictors of educational attainment than sex. “The real story is not bad news about boys doing worse; it’s good news about girls doing better” (Mead, 2006). In response to this argument, other writers have argued that male performance has not decreased over the years; rather, female performance has increased more dramatically than male performance.

16. 16 Education: 1. Do males and females perform similarly in school?