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Psychology 320: Gender Psychology

Lecture 42

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Education:

1. Do males and females perform similarly in school?

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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:

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

2.3

2.4

2.5

2.6

2.7

2.8

2.9

3

3.1

3.2

1990 1994 1998 2000 2005

Female

MaleGP

A

5

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

50

70

90

110

130

150

170

190

210

1990 1995 2000 2005

Female

Male

Tho

usan

ds

6

University Enrollment by Sex, 2004-2008 (Statistics Canada, 2009)

200

300

400

500

600

700

Female

Male

Tho

usan

ds

7

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

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

1995 2000 2005

Female

Male

Tho

usan

ds

8

Number of Graduate Degrees Granted by Sex, 1995-2005 (Statistics Canada, 2008)*

1011121314151617181920

1995 2000 2005

Female

Male

Tho

usan

ds

* Master’s and doctorate degrees combined; more females than males earn master’s degrees; more males than females earn doctorate

degrees.

9

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

1981 1991 2001

Female

Male

Percentage of 25-29 Year Olds in the Labour Force with a University Degree by Sex, 1981-2001

(Statistics Canada, 2007)P

erce

ntag

e w

ith U

nive

rsity

Deg

ree

10

Percentage of 25-29 Year Olds with a University Degree by Sex and Ethnicity, 1971-2006

(US Department of Education, 2007)

10

Per

cent

age

with

Uni

vers

ity D

egre

e

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Major Field of Study Number of Females (Thousands)

Number of Males(Thousands)

Education, recreational and counselling services 528 233

Fine and applied arts 77 41

Humanities 285 201

Social sciences 394 336

Agricultural, biological, nutritional and food services 107 97

Health professions 281 135

Commerce, management and business administration

321 427

Applied science technologies and trades 3 9

Engineering and applied sciences 71 394

Mathematics, computer and physical sciences 109 229

Major Field of Study, Age 15 and Older, by Sex (Statistics Canada, 2001)

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• 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).

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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)

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• 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.

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• 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.

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Education:

1. Do males and females perform similarly in school?