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Females in Mathematics: Still on the Road to Parity

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Mapping Equity and Quality in Mathematics Education

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Abstract

U.S. females compare favorably with males in some mathematics achievement data, as well as in high school mathematics coursework and grades. These accomplishments have led to contentions by the popular press—and at times the mathematics education community—that females are now on par with males in mathematics. This public perception threatens to diminish continued, needed support for females in mathematics. This chapter summarizes data on lingering areas of concern for females in mathematics, including achievement on standardized tests and in the highest levels of mathematics performance, as well as participation in mathematics (e.g., competitions, higher-level coursework, careers), mathematics-related dispositions, and treatment by teachers, parents, and society at large. Data are drawn mostly from U.S. sources but also from a variety of other countries in addressing this worldwide issue. Researchers, educators, policymakers, and others are called on to continue to address gender issues in mathematics and to do so in more nuanced ways. Research-based suggestions are offered for supporting and encouraging females in mathematics.

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Acknowledgment

The author would like to thank Martha Carr and Janet Hart Frost for providing feedback on an earlier draft of this chapter.

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  1. Educational Specialties/299, College of Education, University of Nevada, 89557-0299, Reno, Nevada, USA

    Lynda R. Wiest

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  1. Lynda R. Wiest
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Correspondence to Lynda R. Wiest .

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  1. Curtin University of Technology, Perth, West Australia, Australia

    Bill Atweh

  2. University of the Witwatersrand, Witwatersrand, 2050, South Africa

    Mellony Graven

  3. College of Arts and Science, University, Miami, 45056, USA

    Walter Secada

  4. Dept. Education, Learning &, Philosophy, Aalborg University, Fibigerstraede 10, Aalborg, 9220, Denmark

    Paola Valero

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Wiest, L.R. (2010). Females in Mathematics: Still on the Road to Parity. In: Atweh, B., Graven, M., Secada, W., Valero, P. (eds) Mapping Equity and Quality in Mathematics Education. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-90-481-9803-0_23

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