Abstract
Although research in education, including worldwide Programme for International Stu-dent Assessment (PISA) by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS) by the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement, shows that female language learners outdo their male counterparts in the development of verbal skills, a number of re-searchers have strongly challenged that claim. The aim of this paper is to find out whether professional foreign language competence in a higher education institution (HEI) in Latvia is different between females and males. In order to determine this, we have analyzed final grades and presentation scores (lecturer, peer and self-assessment) of students in an ESP (English for Specific Purposes, in our case: Sport English) course, as well as their levels of second language acquisition, obtained in centralized secondary school leaving exams, which serves as the basis for further development of professional foreign language competence in a sport related HEI. Whereas grades, scores and levels are considered in the present paper as depen-dent variables, gender constitutes an independent variable. A series of Mann-Whitney U tests has revealed no significant difference in male and female achievement in centralized school leaving exam in second language (English); in final grades, obtained by students in an ESP course; and in lecturer assessment of student presentations in the ESP course. However, the analysis of peer assessment of student presentations in the ESP course reveals that females tend to overestimate themselves and their peers. The latter observation, as this paper argues, may result from the fact that sport related HEI students are characterized by increased self-esteem (Rudzinska, 2007).
Highlights
Research in education yields strong gender biased results in the development of verbal skills
Professional foreign language competence, which is developed in higher education in English for speci c purposes (ESP) courses, is based on student verbal skills
It has been found that 15 year old girls in all the countries participating in the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) 2000 surpass their male equivalents in reading literacy, which is the ba
Summary
Research in education yields strong gender biased results in the development of verbal skills. Professional foreign language competence, which is developed in higher education in English for speci c purposes (ESP) courses, is based on student verbal skills. It has been conclusively proved that women, regardless of age, possess better developed verbal skills than men. Results of the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS) by the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement 2001 show that the reading achievement, attitude to reading, as well as self assessment of reading among 4th grade girls is signi cantly higher than that of 4th grade boys (Johansone, 2003). At advanced placement tests taken by highly selected high school students, women, on average, perform better in foreign language tests than men (Cole, 1997). Women dominate in accumulated knowledge, and especially with regard to verbal skills (The psychology of abilities, 2003)
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