Male Superiority In Math: Fact or Fiction?

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Male Superiority In Math: Fact or Fiction?

One true mystery of mathematics is the small number of female mathematicians. When most people think of mathematicians, they automatically assume that they are male. This leads to the idea that boys are mathematically superior to girls, which has long been a popular belief. Recent studies, however, may prove this to be wrong. The fact is that there are numerous female mathematicians who have made very important contributions to the mathematical world throughout history. Although they may not be as famous as some other comparable male mathematicians, their work is very important simply because they did significant work in a field that has always been assumed a man’s domain for some reason or another. Despite this, they still worked on mathematics because of the importance that they place on it.

One possible explanation of there being more male mathematicians than female is the place that a mathematician has in society. It is a very honorable career, but in the mind of a girl, it may seem undesirable, especially at a young age. Many girls think that being a mathematician is a man’s job. They also believe that if they study mathematics, guys may view them as being "braniacs," and give up studying math at a very young age, thereby limiting their futures and career choices.

A study was conducted by Gilah C. Leder whose primary objective was to

"examine whether the fear of success (FS) construct, which grew out of attempts to understand the conflicting sex-related findings in achievement motivation, was helpful in explaining observed sex differences in mathematics, achievement and course participation" (4).

The study was conducted with 258 boys and 233 girls in various grades. ...

... middle of paper ...

...ew mathematical careers in different ways, and they may have superiorities over each other in certain areas of mathematics. However, the fact that they are different by no means proves that one sex is better at mathematics than the other; if these studies prove anything, it is that girls indeed are equally good at mathematics as boys.

Bibliography

1.Volpe, Betty. Mathematics Teaching in the Middle School. http://www.nctm/org/mtms/1999/02/olympiad.htm.

(10/26/99)

2.Fennema, Elizabeth. The Use of Spatial Visualization Mathematics by Girls and Boys. Journal for Research in Mathematics Education, 16(1985), 184.

3.Fennema, Elizabeth. Mathematics Learning and the Sexes: A Review. Journal for Research in Mathematics, 5 (1974), 126-139.

4.Leder, Gilah C. Mathematics Achievement and Fear of Success. Journal for Research in Mathematics, 13(1982), 124-135.

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