It’s based on data we already knew, but this OECD-report has a strong focus on gender:
- While PISA reveals large gender differences in reading, in favour of 15-year-old girls, the gap is narrower when digital reading skills are tested. Indeed, the Survey of Adult Skills suggests that there are no significant gender differences in digital literacy proficiency among 16-29 year-olds.
- Boys are more likely to underachieve when they attend schools with a large proportion of socio‑economically disadvantaged students.
- Girls – even high-achieving girls – tend to underachieve compared to boys when they are asked to think like scientists, such as when they are asked to formulate situations mathematically or interpret phenomena scientifically.
- Parents are more likely to expect their sons, rather than their daughters, to work in a science, technology, engineering or mathematics field – even when their 15-year-old boys and girls perform at the same level in mathematics.
So, be aware to reduce this to a ‘boys problem’, and maybe it’s actually not that new at all.
Links:
- OECD Press release: Early gender gaps drive career choices and employment opportunities, says OECD
- Download the book: The ABC of Gender Equality in Education: Aptitude, Behaviour, Confidence
- OECD Gender Portal
Download the summary: PISA in Focus No. 49 What lies behind gender inequality in education?
[…] Although girls are outperforming boys in education, this doesn’t seem to be the case if you look at university directories for women in science, engineering, and medicine. […]