A new study regarding participation and achievement in Advanced Placement (AP) high school courses has identified several subjects where traditional gender gaps have closed, and others where gender gaps have persisted over the past two decades.
“Gender stereotypes about ability, like persistent beliefs that boys are naturally better at mathematics, physics, computing or similar STEM courses, or that girls are better at arts, can influence both students’ choices on which class to take and how well they do in that class,” said lead author Kadir Bahar, associate professor of educational psychology at the University of Georgia. “Students are more likely to enter and persist in a field when they feel that people like them belong in it.”
The study authors reviewed more than 70 million exam results from more than 40 million students across 45 AP subjects between 1997 and 2020. Across the study period, girls tended to dominate AP courses in languages, humanities, and the arts, while boys were overrepresented in STEM subjects‚ particularly in physics and computer science. For example, some 60 percent of AP physics students were boys, while roughly 70 percent of AP studio arts students were girls. However, some subjects have seen recent improvements in their gender gaps, with boys’ and girls’ participation trending toward parity in calculus, statistics, German, and Latin.
Notably, gender representation among AP exam takers was strongly associated with gender representation among students earning a top score of 5. But this varied widely by subject. In several courses where girls represent most of the test takers, including biology, environmental studies, and world history, boys still outnumbered girls among top scorers.
“Gendered expectations can accumulate over many years,” said Dr. Bahar. “Parents may perceive sons as more mathematically capable and daughters as more verbally capable. Teachers may unintentionally enforce such expectations, and peer norms can make certain subjects appear more or less socially appropriate for boys or girls.”
He added, “Equity doesn’t mean forcing equal numbers of boys and girls into every subject. But it means ensuring that gender is not creating unnecessary barriers to opportunity, participation, support or high achievement.”