Abstract
Female students who agree that women do worse in physics than men have lower conceptual inventory scores than female students who disagree with this stereotype.
Highlights
Prior research has found that in introductory physics courses male students often outperform female students on conceptual assessments such as the Force Concept Inventory (FCI) [1] and the Conceptual Survey of Electricity and Magnetism (CSEM) [2], a phenomenon sometimes referred to as the “gender gap” [3,4,5]
7%–13% of algebra-based and calculus-based students agreed with this gender stereotype. It appears that this stereotype was not very common amongst college introductory physics students. (We note that the percentage of female students in algebra-based and calculus-based classes was around two-thirds and one-third, respectively, and it was fairly constant over the two years of data collection.)
Our investigation in study 1 suggests that asking algebrabased introductory physics students to indicate their gender before taking the CSEM did not impact their performance, consistent with a previous study conducted with the AP calculus exam and the Computerized Placement test [48]
Summary
Prior research has found that in introductory physics courses male students often outperform female students on conceptual assessments such as the Force Concept Inventory (FCI) [1] and the Conceptual Survey of Electricity and Magnetism (CSEM) [2], a phenomenon sometimes referred to as the “gender gap” [3,4,5]. Prior studies have found a gender gap even after controlling for factors such as different prior preparation or coursework of male and female students [3,6] and others have found that using evidence-based pedagogies can reduce the gender gap [7], but the extent to which this occurs varies. Research suggests that even six-year-old boys and girls have gendered views about smartness in favor of boys [30] Such stereotypes can impact female students’ self-efficacy [31,32,33], i.e., their beliefs about their ability to perform well in disciplines such as physics in which they are underrepresented and which have been associated with brilliance. The association of high ability with brilliance in physics (e.g., portraying physicists such as Newton and Einstein as geniuses), rather
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
