The U.S. Department of Education has issued a new report on gender differences on how high school students regard the study of mathematics and the sciences. According to the data, 59 percent of male high school graduates said they liked mathematics compared to 53 percent of women high school graduates. Half of male high school graduates said mathematics was “one of my favorite subjects.” Some 43 percent of women said mathematics was one of their favorite subjects.
A large 70 percent of male high school graduates said they liked taking science courses and 48 percent said science was one of the their favorite subjects. For women high school graduates, 59 percent said they liked science but only about one third said that science was one of their favorite subjects in school.
The report also looks at the percentages of men and women high school graduates who earned credits in specific mathematics and sciences courses. Also included is data on gender differences in scores on the National Assessment of Educational Progress examinations.
The full report, Gender Differences in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) Interest, Credits Earned, and NAEP Performance in the 12th Grade, can be downloaded by clicking here.