Teachers' beliefs and gender differences in mathematics: a review

Abstract

Summary In this paper the literature related to gender issues and teachers' beliefs regarding mathematics education is reviewed. The first part concerns teacher gender, including those aspects not directly dealing with teacher beliefs. Some studies related to teachers' beliefs considering gender as a variable are also reported. The paper concludes with recommendations for future research. To assist readers in visualizing how the several parts of the research literature in this field relate to one another, a model of research regarding gender issues in relation to teachers' beliefs has been developed. Collectively the body of literature available to date suggests that, first, despite lack of conclusive evidence, teachers have different beliefs about male and female students. They tend to stereotype mathematics as a male domain; this has been reflected in teachers' tendency to overrate male students' mathematics capability, have higher expectations for male students and more positive attitudes about male students. Secondly, no substantial gender differences have been noticed in teachers' beliefs, even though some nuances appear. This leads us to believe that there are small, subtle, interactive and cumulative links between teachers' beliefs and gender differences in mathematics education.