Research Finds Gender Gap in Grades Begins at a Young Age

A new study by researchers at the University of Georgia and Columbia University finds that in terms of grades earned, young girls do better in school than young boys despite the fact that young boys score higher on standardized tests. The study, published in the Journal of Human Resources, examined the test scores and grades of more than 5,000 students in kindergarten through fifth grade.

The data showed that the gender gap in grades favors girls from an early age. The authors hypothesize that the higher grades for girls result from non-cognitive skills such as “how well each child was engaged in the classroom, how often the child externalized or internalized problems, how often the child lost control and how well the child developed interpersonal skills.” In other words, girls’ attitudes and behavior in the classroom have an impact on their grades.

The vast majority of elementary school teachers are women but the authors state there is not sufficient data to determine if the gender of the teacher has any impact on the gender gap in grades.