Newsletter

April 2012

What Do AP Subject Exams Tell Us About Differences In Academic Interest By Gender?

Mark Perry

The
table above shows the gender breakdown for 35 Advanced Placement subject exams
taken by high school students in 2011, based on data just released in the
subject supplement as part of the 8th Annual "AP Report to the Nation." Here
are some observations:

1. Of the 35 AP subjects, female high students were over-represented in 20
   subjects, male students were over-represented in 14 subjects and one subject
   (Latin) was perfectly balanced by gender.
2. In the science area, female students showed a greater interest in biology (59%)
   and environmental science (56%) than males, and males showed a greater interest
   in chemistry (47%) and physics (65%).
3. For mathematics subjects, female high school students were slightly
   over-represented in statistics (52%) and males were slightly over-represented in
   calculus (51%). For advanced calculus, male students were over-represented at
   59%.
4. For all languages except German, more female students took language AP exams
   than males, and for French, female students outnumbered male students by more
   than 2-to-1.
5. Male high school students were significantly over-represented in all three
   physics exams, and both computer science exams.

Bottom Line: Assuming that high school
students take AP classes and exams based on their interests and aptitudes in
certain subjects, there do appear to be many gender-based differences in
academic interests. Even within STEM fields there appear to be gender
differences, with female high school students showing a greater interest than
males in biology and environmental science and males showing a greater interest
in chemistry and physics. Female students show an interest in statistics and
calculus, but less of an interest in advanced math (calculus) and very little
interest in computer science compared to their male classmates.

Here’s a prediction: If these AP test results generate any controversy or
concerns, it will only be a very selective concern about female
under-representationin physics and computer science, but no concern
about male under-representation in art, language, history,
biology, environmental science and psychology.

Further, assuming that the AP test data reflect some natural gender differences
in academic interest, that could then explain this recent prediction from
Science, as reported by the

Chronicle of Higher Education:

"It
could take nearly 100 years before half of all professors in science and
engineering are female, according to an article out on Friday in the journal
Science. The assertion is shocking because people in academe have been
working for decades to increase the number of women in those fields."

MP: Maybe it’s not so shocking if the
AP subject test data are reflecting natural differences in "revealed gender
preferences" of academic interest. When there are almost 350 high school boys
taking the advanced physics AP exam for every 100 high school girls, and more
than 600 boys taking the advanced computer science AP exam for every 100 girls,
it’s understandable that it might take 100 years for perfect gender parity for
STEM professors. And based on the "revealed academic preferences" of female
high school students who are voluntarily choosing different subjects than boys
for AP classes and AP exams, maybe that’s demonstrating that women can live
perfectly successful and rewarding lives without ever achieving perfect gender
parity in STEM fields.

mjperry.blogspot.ca, Feb. 20, 2012.