Most people think that girls are good at literature and boys are good at math, but recent research shows that this is not the case because boys and girls are equally good at math.
New scientific research published in the journal NPJ Science of Learning shows that girls and boys have the same brain and ability to learn math, eliminating the stereotype that women are “predisposed” to study literature and often Math is worse than men – Photo: HealthLine
There is something quite strange but very common, which is that social classes are often more female than natural classes. Human resources working in the natural and social sciences also have a clear gender gap.
To clarify doubts about whether biological differences affect women’s math ability, researchers at Carnegie Mellon University (USA) conducted experiments on 104 children (55 of them). girls) between the ages of 3 and 10.
They charted their brain activity with an MRI scanner and showed the children an educational video of maths like counting and addition, then compared their brain activity results with 63 adults (38 boys, 25 female) also watched the same videos.
The results showed no difference between the brain function or development of boys and girls. The children’s math test results performed equally well, regardless of gender.
Later, when your daughter is discouraged before a difficult math problem, patiently help her learn and remove the thought “boys are usually better at math” – (Photo: nerdymamma.com)
According to researchers, there has been a debate in the scientific world for many years about gender and biological differences in math ability and activities in the STEM field (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics). learn).
In the US alone, from 2015 to 2016, the number of female students studying STEM subjects accounted for only 35.5%, 32.6% of master’s courses and 33.7% of doctoral degrees. This situation is happening all over the world.
“While this is not a large study, its results suggest that the idea that women are not as good at math as men is unscientific,” said Jessica Cantlon, a professor of developmental neuroscience at Carnegie Mellon University. .
Even a study by Erasmus University Rotterdam (Netherlands) earlier this year showed that female students maintain good math performance for a longer time than male students.
” The natural sciences have traditionally been seen as a weak point for women. Many people think that they are more gifted in social studies. Scientific findings show that it is gender biased . In fact, men and women. are equally capable ,” said researcher Matthijs Oosterveen, Erasmus University Rotterdam (Netherlands), said.
The researchers hope this changes long-standing stereotypes about gender and academic ability that women are “predisposed” to study literature over math. That mindset could influence the way parents and teachers teach biology and how science-math employers value and treat women.
“We need to be aware of this misconception so as not to cause gender inequality,” Professor Cantlon said.