Gender differences in mathematics and science achievement are negligible among top-performing math students, while female students show better reading achievement¶

Claim · All claims
Evidence · 1 study (3 entries) · quant-synthesis r3 · q4 · i0–i1
Currency · newest study 2021 · not yet checked against its sources · not reviewed by a person

Subclaims¶

q4 i0 The mean gender gap in mathematics achievement among top-performing math students is negligible (d = 0.05) and homogeneous across countries. → Keller 2021 q4 i0 The mean gender gap in science achievement among top-performing math students is negligible (d = 0.01) and homogeneous. → Keller 2021 (2) q4 i1 Female top-performing math students outperform male students in reading (d = -0.23), with heterogeneous effect sizes across countries. → Keller 2021 (3)

Evidence¶

Keller 2021¶

Keller, L., Preckel, F., Eccles, J. S., & Brunner, M. (2021). Top-Performing Math Students in 82 Countries: An Integrative Data Analysis of Gender Differences in Achievement, Achievement Profiles, and Achievement Motivation. Journal of Educational Psychology. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/edu0000685

q4 · i0 · quant-synthesis · r3

Meta-analytic synthesis of country-specific Cohen's d values from six PISA cycles. The weighted mean "gender gap in mathematics achievement was d = 0.05", negligible by the article's own effect-size ranges; effect sizes were homogeneous, so no moderator analysis was run.

"The overall weighted mean effect size of the gender gap in mathematics achievement was d = 0.05 (see Table 3), representing a negligible gender difference in top-performing math students."

Keller 2021 (2)¶

Keller, L., Preckel, F., Eccles, J. S., & Brunner, M. (2021). Top-Performing Math Students in 82 Countries: An Integrative Data Analysis of Gender Differences in Achievement, Achievement Profiles, and Achievement Motivation. Journal of Educational Psychology. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/edu0000685

q4 · i0 · quant-synthesis · r3

Same synthesis protocol applied to science achievement. The weighted mean "gender difference in science achievement was d = 0.01", with almost all country-level effect sizes negligible or small and homogeneous, so no moderator analysis was conducted.

"The overall weighted mean effect size of the gender difference in science achievement was d = 0.01 (Table 3), showing that male and female students performed similarly in science."

Keller 2021 (3)¶

Keller, L., Preckel, F., Eccles, J. S., & Brunner, M. (2021). Top-Performing Math Students in 82 Countries: An Integrative Data Analysis of Gender Differences in Achievement, Achievement Profiles, and Achievement Motivation. Journal of Educational Psychology. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/edu0000685

q4 · i1 · quant-synthesis · r3

Meta-analytic synthesis for reading achievement found "female students showed better reading performance than male students did" with a printed effect size d = -0.23 (small). Effects were heterogeneous, but gender equality indicators did not significantly explain the variation.

"The overall weighted mean effect size of the gender difference in reading achievement was d = –0.23 (see Table 3), indicating that, on average, female students showed better reading performance than male students did."

Discussion¶

Related Claims¶

• Male top-performing math students show strongly science-oriented science–reading profiles while female students' profiles are more balanced — related
• Among top-performing math students, male students show strongly math-oriented math–reading achievement profiles whereas female students' profiles are more balanced — related
• Gender equality indicators moderate gender differences among top-performing math students: tertiary enrollment ratios predict the share of female students and their achievement profiles — related
• Male students are overrepresented among top-performing math students, with a mean female-to-male ratio of 1:1.50 across 82 countries — related
• Gender differences in the math–science achievement profile of top-performing math students are small, with both genders tilted toward mathematics — related
• Across nations, boys outperform girls in mathematics by a small average margin while girls outperform boys in reading by a margin three times larger — related
• The inverse relation between mathematics and reading sex differences also holds within nations across the performance continuum — related
• Male top-performing math students report higher math self-efficacy and stronger math-oriented motivation than female top performers — related