Elementary Students’ Views on the Gendering of Mathematics
Gender differences in mathematics learning outcomes are still evident in many countries participating in large scale international testing, as well as.
- Pub. date: October 15, 2018
- Pages: 867-876
- 599 Downloads
- 1697 Views
- 4 Citations
Gender differences in mathematics learning outcomes are still evident in many countries participating in large scale international testing, as well as in national testing in Israel, the context in which the study reported here was conducted. The participants were 281 students from three Israeli elementary schools and were in grades 4 and 6. The students completed a questionnaire with items based on a selection of variables included in explanatory models for gender differences in mathematics. It was found that many students held gendered beliefs related to mathematics learning, particularly when the questions asked related to themselves or to significant others in their lives (parents and teachers); the views of the majority of students were gender neutral. When presented with two photographs -a man, and a woman- and asked who was the one more likely to work with mathematics, it was clear that the students’ choices and explanations echoed perceptions of mathematics as a male domain.
Keywords: Mathematics education, gender stereotyping, elementary students, beliefs
References
Beilock, S. L., Gunderson, E. A., Ramirez, G., & Levine, S. C. (2010). Female teachers’ math anxiety affects girls’ math achievement. Proceedings of the national academy of sciences of the United States of America, 107(5), 1860-1863. DOI:10.1073/pnas.0910967107
Boaler, J. (1997). Experiencing school mathematics: Teaching styles, sex, and setting. Buckingham PA: Open University Press
Boaler, J., Wiliam, D., & Brown, M. (2000). Students’ experiences of ability grouping - disaffection, polarisation and the construction of failure. British Educational Research Journal, 26(5), 631-648.
Chen, L., Bae, S. R., Battista, C., Qin, S., Chen, T., Evans, T. M., Menon, V. (2018). Positive attitude toward math supports early academic success: Behavioral evidence and neurocognitive mechanisms. Psychological Science, 29(3), 390–402.
Eccles, J., Adler, T. F., Futterman, R., Goff, S. B. Kaczala, C. M., Meece, J. L., & Midgley, C. (1985). Self-perceptions, task perceptions, socializing influences, and the decision to enroll in mathematics. In S. F. Chipman, L. R. Brush, & D. M. Wilson (Eds.), Women and mathematics: Balancing the equation (pp.95-121). Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.
Fennema, E. (1974). Mathematics learning and the sexes: A review. Journal for Research in Mathematics Education, 5(3), 126-139.
Fennema, E., Carpenter, T. P., Jacobs, V. R., Franke, M. L., & Levi, L. W. (1998). A longitudinal study of gender differences in young children's mathematical thinking. Educational Researcher, 27(5), 6-11.
Fennema, E., Peterson, P. L., Carpenter, T. P., & Lubinski, C. A. (1990). Teachers’ attributions and beliefs about girls, boys, and mathematics. Educational Studies in Mathematics, 21(1), 55-69.
Fennema, E., & Sherman, J. (1976). Fennema-Sherman mathematics attitude scales. JSAS: Catalog of selected documents in psychology, 6(1), 31 (Ms. No. 1225).
Forgasz, H. J. (1992). Gender and perceptions of mathematics achievement amongst Year 2 students. In B. Southwell, B. Perry, & K. Owens (Eds.) Proceedings of the fifteenth annual conference of the Mathematics Education Research Group of Australasia: Space - the first and final frontier (pp. 285-293). Sydney, Australia: Mathematics Education Research Group of Australasia.
Forgasz, H. J. (1995). Learning mathematics: Affect, gender, and classroom factors. Unpublished doctoral dissertation. Monash University, Australia.
Forgasz, H. (2008). Stars, compass, and GPS: Navigating currents and charting directions for mathematics education research on gender issues. In M. Goos, R. Brown, & K. Makar (Eds.), Conference proceedings MERGA 31 (pp. 5-15). Brisbane, Australia: Mathematics Education Research Group of Australasia.
Forgasz, H. J., Leder, G. C., & Gardner, P. L. (1999). The Fennema-Sherman mathematics as a male domain scale re-examined. Journal for Research in Mathematics Education, 30(3), 342-348. DOI: 10.2307/749839
Forgasz, H., Leder, G., & Tan, H. (2014). Public views on the gendering of mathematics and related careers: International comparisons. Educational Studies in Mathematics, 87(3), 369-388. DOI: 10.1007/s10649-014-9550-6
Forgasz, H. J., & Mittelberg, D. (2008). Israeli Jewish and Arab students’ gendering of mathematics. ZDM The International Journal on Mathematics Education, 40, 545-558.
Hyde, J. S., Fennema, E., Ryan, M., Frost, L. A., & Hopp, C. (1990). Gender comparisons of mathematics attitudes and affect: A meta-analysis. Psychology of Women Quarterly, 14, 299-324.
Kulm, G. (1980). Research on mathematics attitude. In R. J. Shumway (Ed.), Research in mathematics education (pp. 356-387). Reston, VA: National Council of Teachers of Mathematics.
Lavy, V., & Sand, E. (2015). On the origins of gender human capital gaps: Short and long term consequences of teachers’ stereotypical biases. National Bureau of Economic Research [NBER] Working Paper No. 20909. Retrieved from http://www.nber.org/papers/w20909.pdf
Lazarides, R., & Watt, H. M. G. (2015). Girls’ and boys’ perceived mathematics teacher beliefs, classroom learning environments and mathematical career intentions. Contemporary Educational Psychology, 41, 51–61. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.cedpsych.2014.11.005
Leder, G. C. (1990). Gender differences in mathematics: An overview. In E. Fennema & G. C. Leder (Eds.), Mathematics and gender (pp. 10-26). New York, NY: Teachers College Press.
Leder, G. C. (1992). Mathematics and gender: Changing perspectives. In D. A. Grouws (Ed.), Handbook of research on mathematics teaching and learning (pp. 597-622). New York: Macmillan.
Leder, G. C., & Forgasz, H. J. (2002a). Measuring mathematical beliefs and their impact on the learning of mathematics: A new approach. In G. Leder, E. Pehkonen, & G. Toerner (Eds.), Beliefs: A hidden variable in mathematics education? (pp. 95-113). Dordrecht, the Netherlands: Kluwer.
Leder, G. C., & Forgasz, H. J. (2002b). Two new instruments to probe attitudes about gender and mathematics. ERIC, Resources in Education (RIE). ERIC document number: ED463312.
Leder, G. C., Forgasz, H. J., & Solar, C. (1996). Research and intervention programs in mathematics education: A gendered issue. In A. Bishop, K. Clements, C. Keitel, J. Kilpatrick, & C. Laborde (Eds.), International handbook of mathematics education, Part 2 (pp. 945-985). Dordrecht, Netherlands: Kluwer.
Li, N., & Koch, I. (2017). Gender report 2017: Participation, performance, and attitudes towards mathematics. AMSI Choosemaths Research, 2. Retrieved from https://amsi.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/amsi-cm-gender-report-2017-web.pdf
Markovitz, Z., & Forgasz, H. (2017). "Mathematics is like a lion”: Elementary students’ beliefs about mathematics. Educational Studies in Mathematics, 96(1), 49-64. DOI: 10.1007/s10649-017-9759-2.
McDaniel, A. E. (2008). Measuring gender egalitarianism: The attitudinal difference between men and women. International Journal of Sociology, 38(1), 58-80.
McLeod, D. B. (1992). Research on affect in mathematics education: A reconceptualization. In D. A. Grouws (Ed.), Handbook of research on mathematics teaching and learning (pp. 575-596). New York: Macmillan.
Organisation for Economic Development and Cooperation [OECD]. (2014). PISA. Are boys and girls equally prepared for life? Retrieved from https://www.oecd.org/pisa/pisaproducts/PIF-2014-gender-international-version.pdf
Organisation for Economic Development and Cooperation [OECD]. (2017). The pursuit of gender equality: An uphill battle. Paris, France: OECD publishing. [DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1787/9789264281318-en]
Organisation for Economic Development and Cooperation [OECD]. (2018). Gender equality: Essential for sustainable growth. Retrieved from http://www.oecd.org/general/focus/genderequalityessentialforsustainablegrowth.htm
Rapp, J. (2015). Gender gaps in mathematics and language in Israel – What can be learned from the Israeli case? Israel: Ministry of Education. Retrieved from http://cms.education.gov.il/NR/rdonlyres/45CCC357-4A00-42A6-9E8B-F892A24B202E/203775/gendergapinmathandlanguageinIsrael_Final.docx
Reyes, L. H., & Stanic, G. M. A. (1988). Race, sex, socioeconomic status and mathematics. Journal for Research in Mathematics Education, 19(1), 26-43.
Spencer, S. J., Steele, C. M., & Quinn, D. M. (1999). Stereotype threat and women’s math performance. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 35(1), 4-28. DOI: 10.1006/jesp.1998.1373
Thomson, S., Lokan, J., Lamb, S., & Ainley, J. (2003). Lessons from the Third International Mathematics and Science Study. Retrieved from https://research.acer.edu.au/timss_monographs/9/
Thomson, S., Wernert, N., O’Grady, E., & Rodrigues, S. (2015). TIMSS 2015. A first look at Australia’s results. Camberwell, Australia: Australian Council for Educational Research. Retrieved from https://research.acer.edu.au/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?referer=&httpsredir=1&article=1000&context=timss_2015
Wang, M. T. (2012). Educational and career interests in math: A longitudinal examination of the links between classroom environment, motivational beliefs, and interests. Developmental Psychology, 48(6), 1643–1657.