69传媒

School & District Management Report Roundup

Study Finds More Girls in STEM Classes

By Sarah D. Sparks 鈥 February 24, 2015 1 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print
Email Copy URL

More girls are taking high school courses in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics, but their science and mathematics test results still lag behind those of boys, according to a new analysis from the National Center for Education Statistics.

The data, from both the 2009 National Assessment of Education Progress in mathematics and science and the High School Transcript Study, show that among those who graduated from high school in 2009, girls were more likely than boys to have earned credit in advanced mathematics and science, including Algebra 2, chemistry, biology, and health sciences, though boys were significantly more likely to earn credit in computer science and engineering.

That continues a long, slow increase in girls鈥 participation in higher mathematics and science courses since 2000.

Why then do the data also show that overall, girls continued to underperform in small but persistent ways across several stem-related parts of the 2009?

One possibility is that male students were still much more likely to earn credit in engineering classes than female students were. However, the girls who did take those classes matched or outperformed their male classmates on the NAEP in mathematics and science.

The overall performance difference could reflect lower interest in stem on the part of the female students studied. In each of the main racial groups, male students tended to be more likely than female students to say they 鈥渓ike鈥 science. And there was a similar gender breakdown for mathematics in each racial group.

Related Tags:

A version of this article appeared in the February 25, 2015 edition of Education Week as Study Finds More Girls in STEM Classes

Events

School & District Management Webinar Crafting Outcomes-Based Contracts That Work for Everyone
Discover the power of outcomes-based contracts and how they can drive student achievement.
This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
School & District Management Webinar
Harnessing AI to Address Chronic Absenteeism in 69传媒
Learn how AI can help your district improve student attendance and boost academic outcomes.
Content provided by 
School & District Management Webinar EdMarketer Quick Hit: What鈥檚 Trending among K-12 Leaders?
What issues are keeping K-12 leaders up at night? Join us for EdMarketer Quick Hit: What鈥檚 Trending among K-12 Leaders?

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide 鈥 elementary, middle, high school and more.
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.

Read Next

School & District Management Reports Strategic Resourcing for K-12 Education: A Work in Progress
This report highlights key findings from surveys of K-12 administrators and product/service providers to shed light on the alignment of purchasing with instructional goals.
School & District Management Download Shhhh!!! It's Underground Spirit Week, Don't Tell the 69传媒
Try this fun twist on the Spirit Week tradition.
Illustration of shushing emoji.
iStock/Getty
School & District Management Opinion How My Experience With Linda McMahon Can Help You Navigate the Trump Ed. Agenda
I have a lesson for district leaders from my (limited) interactions with Trump鈥檚 pick for ed. secretary, writes a former superintendent.
Joshua P. Starr
4 min read
Vector illustration of people walking on upward arrows, symbolizing growth, progress, and teamwork towards success.
iStock/Getty Images
School & District Management Opinion How Social-Emotional Learning Can Unify Your School Community: 7 Timely Tips
It鈥檚 a stressful political season. These SEL best practices can help school leaders weather the unpredictable transitions.
Maurice J. Elias
4 min read
Modern digital collage of caring leader surrounded by positivity. Social Emotional learning leadership.
Vanessa Solis/Education Week via Canva