Some Arguments in Support of Nurture
Differences in girls' math achievement cross-culturally and over time support the role of sociocultural factors in explaining any remaining gender gaps in math performance.
The Study of Mathematically Precocious Youth identifies seventh and eighth graders who score greater than 700 on the SAT math section (the top 0.01 percent or 1 in 10,000 students). Since the early 1980s, the ratio of boys to girls in this extremely select group has dramatically declined from 13-to-1 to around 3-to-1 in recent years. This increase in girls' representation has happened far faster than it would take a genetic change to travel through the population.
Looking across cultures, in the majority of countries more boys than girls scored above the 99th percentile in mathematics on the 2003 Program for International Student Assessment. However, in Iceland and Thailand, more girls than boys scored above the 99th percentile. If girls were somehow genetically inferior at math, they would be so everywhere, but they're not.
These differences over time and between countries illustrate the importance of culture in the development of girls' mathematical skills.
What are your thoughts and experiences on nature versus nurture in terms of mathematical achievement?
I agree with you, Melissa! Thanks for bringing up the WalMart case. It's relevant to so much of what we talk about on this forum.
I find this very interesting. Although the difference is eroding over time, men still cling to thinking it's intrinsic differences. I thought about this listening to the Walmart case questioning. One of the male justices said something like, "If we believe this is evidence for widespread discrimination, then every business in the country seems to discriminate." He sounded outraged, like that could not be true. Duh! Look at the equal pay issue and say that with a straight face. MKS
