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The gender gap in mathematics: evidence from a middle-income country

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  • Prashant Bharadwaj
  • Giacomo De Giorgi
  • David Hansen
  • Christopher Neilson

Abstract

Using a large administrative data set from Chile, we find that, on average, boys perform better than girls in mathematics. In this paper, we document several features of their relative performance. First, we note that the gender gap appears to increase with age (it doubles between fourth grade and eighth grade). Second, we test whether commonly proposed explanations such as parental background and investment in the child, unobserved ability, and classroom environment (including teacher gender) help explain a substantial portion of the gap. While none of these explanations help in explaining a large portion of the gender gap, we show that boys and girls differ significantly in perceptions about their own ability in math. Conditional on math scores, girls are much more likely to state that they dislike math, or find math difficult, compared to boys. We highlight differences in self-assessed ability as areas for future research that might lead to a better understanding of the gender gap in math.

Suggested Citation

  • Prashant Bharadwaj & Giacomo De Giorgi & David Hansen & Christopher Neilson, 2015. "The gender gap in mathematics: evidence from a middle-income country," Staff Reports 721, Federal Reserve Bank of New York.
    • Handle: RePEc:fip:fednsr:721
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    2. Avitabile, Ciro & de Hoyos, Rafael, 2018. "The heterogeneous effect of information on student performance: Evidence from a randomized control trial in Mexico," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 135(C), pages 318-348.
    3. Umut Oguzoglu & Ozbeklik Serkan, 2016. "Like Father, Like Daughter (Unless There Is a Son): Sibling Sex Composition and Women's Stem Major Choice in College," Working Papers 596, Princeton University, Department of Economics, Industrial Relations Section..
    4. Hahn, Youjin & Islam, Asadul & Patacchini, Eleonora & Zenou, Yves, 2017. "Do Friendship Networks Improve Female Education?," IZA Discussion Papers 10674, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    5. Michela Carlana, 2019. "Implicit Stereotypes: Evidence from Teachers’ Gender Bias," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 134(3), pages 1163-1224.
    6. Marina Bassi & Mercedes Mateo Díaz & Rae Lesser Blumberg & Ana Reynoso, 2018. "Failing to notice? Uneven teachers’ attention to boys and girls in the classroom," IZA Journal of Labor Economics, Springer;Forschungsinstitut zur Zukunft der Arbeit GmbH (IZA), vol. 7(1), pages 1-22, December.
    7. Karthik Muralidharan & Ketki Sheth, 2016. "Bridging Education Gender Gaps in Developing Countries: The Role of Female Teachers," Journal of Human Resources, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 51(2), pages 269-297.
    8. Gielen, Anne C. & Zwiers, Esmée, 2018. "Biology and the Gender Gap in Educational Performance: The Role of Prenatal Testosterone in Test Scores," IZA Discussion Papers 11936, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    9. Magdalena Smyk, 2017. "Gender occupational segregation: the role of parents," GRAPE Working Papers 4, GRAPE Group for Research in Applied Economics.
    10. Zenou, Yves & Hahn, Youjin & Hassani-Mahmooei, behrooz & Islam, Asad & Patacchini, Eleonora, 2016. "Do Friends Improve Female Education? The Case of Bangladesh," CEPR Discussion Papers 11615, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    11. Michael J. Kottelenberg & Steven F. Lehrer, 2018. "Does Quebecs subsidized child care policy give boys and girls an equal start?," Canadian Journal of Economics, Canadian Economics Association, vol. 51(2), pages 627-659, May.
    12. Marina Bassi & Rae Lesser Blumberg & Mercedes Mateo Díaz, 2016. "Under the "Cloak of Invisibility": Gender Bias in Teaching Practices and Learning Outcomes," IDB Publications (Working Papers) 94336, Inter-American Development Bank.
    13. Magdalena Smyk, 2017. "Gender beliefs and planned occupation: high school pupils and their parents," GRAPE Working Papers 3, GRAPE Group for Research in Applied Economics.
    14. Prashant Bharadwaj & Giacomo De Giorgi & David Hansen & Christopher A. Neilson, 2016. "The Gender Gap in Mathematics: Evidence from Chile," Economic Development and Cultural Change, University of Chicago Press, vol. 65(1), pages 141-166.
    15. Moshe Justman & Susan J. Méndez, 2016. "Gendered Selection of STEM Subjects for Matriculation," Melbourne Institute Working Paper Series wp2016n10, Melbourne Institute of Applied Economic and Social Research, The University of Melbourne.
    16. Abrahamsson, Sara, 2024. "Smartphone Bans, Student Outcomes and Mental Health," Discussion Paper Series in Economics 1/2024, Norwegian School of Economics, Department of Economics.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    gender gap; education; middle-income countries;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • I00 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - General - - - General
    • I25 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Education and Economic Development
    • J16 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of Gender; Non-labor Discrimination

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