Lynn Reports Gender Disparities in 9th Grade Coursework Pass Rates

Last month, the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education released a report which noted the percentage of 9th grade students who had completed and passed all courses during the 2017-2018 academic year. Overall, 68.2% of Lynn Public School District students completed and passed all coursework. Interestingly, however, when broken out by subject area, the pass rates by individual subject area are slightly higher:

• 85.2% of 9th students completed/passed English Language Arts
• 86.4% completed/passed History/Social Science
• 83% completed/passed Mathematics
• 81.6% completed/passed Science
• 84.9% completed/passed courses designated 'Other'

In looking at the gender breakdown related to these pass rates, statewide female students had an all course pass rate of 84.7% compared to 75.1% for male students. In Lynn, that rate was 73.5% for female students compared to 64.1% for male students. Pass rates also varied by high school within LPS:

Last year, Lynn Tech reported a pass rate for male students higher than the state's overall rate and was on par with the state for female students. Generally, the pass rates for each individual subject (English Language Arts, History, Science, etc.) matched the overall pass rate reported for each gender with courses deemed 'Other' slightly higher. In 2017-18, 10% of 9th grade students overall were retained, again with gender disparities (7.5% of female 9th grade students retained versus 11.9% of male students).

For a look at pass rates for other subgroups including English Language Learners and Students with disabilities, see here.

Source: www.doe.mass.edu

Some MA Districts See High Percentage of Males Dropping Out

In 2010-11, Massachusetts had an overall annual dropout rate of 2.7%. The percentage of students dropping out, however, did vary at the district and individual school level as well as by subgroup. In particular, some districts/schools in the state are seeing a high percentage of male students dropping out each year. Below are the districts with a higher than 5% dropout rate for male students during school year 2010-11.

• Athol-Royalston: 6%
• Boston: 7.4%
• Boston Collegiate Charter: 8.2%
• Boston Day and Evening Charter: 43%
• Brockton: 6.6%
• Chelsea: 6.2%
• Chicopee: 5.6%
• Everett: 5.6%
• Fairhaven: 6.7%
• Fall River: 5.6%
• Fitchburg: 8.5%
• Gardner: 6.5%
• Gill-Montague: 9%
• Harwich: 10.5%
• Haverhill: 8.1%
• Holyoke: 10.2%
• Lawrence: 9.8%
• Littleton: 5.9%
• Lowell: 9.6%
• Lowell Middlesex Charter: 54.4%
• Lynn: 5.4%
• Martha's Vineyard Charter: 9.1%
• New Bedford: 9.1%
• North Adams: 6.7%
• Palmer: 8.4%
• Phoenix Charter: 38.2%
• Provincetown: 11.1%
• Ralph C Mahar: 7.4%
• Revere: 5.4%
• Saugus: 6.6%
• Southbridge: 5.4%
• Spirit of Knowledge Charter: 6.7%
• Springfield: 13.3%
• Taunton: 6.9%
• Waltham: 5.6%
• Ware: 6.5%
• Wareham: 6%
• Webster: 9.1%
• Westport: 5.8%
• West Springfield: 5.5%

*All Data Taken From: www.doe.mass.edu

Brockton Sees Gender Disparities in MCAS Proficiency Rates

In 2011, Lynn saw some significant gender disparities in graduation rates at three out of the four high schools. The Brockton public school system also saw a gender disparity in its graduation rate with 64.5% of males graduating in four years while 74.7% of females graduated. The gender disparity on Brockton's educational related outcomes in 2011 also extended to standardized test scores (MCAS). 

The biggest gaps between males and females were in English language arts where there was a 13.3 point average difference in proficiency rates at each grade level; the range was between eight  and  seventeen points. This is not particularly surprising given research which suggests that females tend to do better in reading/writing than males. The smallest gap between males and females in Brockton was in the third grade reading proficiency rates. In 2011, 33% of third graders scored proficient or above on the MCAS test. When broken down by gender, 29% of males achieved proficiency on this exam compared to 37% of females. Third grade reading proficiency rates have been established as highly predictive of the likelihood of graduating from high school; the gender disparity in reading at this level was mirrored by the previously mentioned disparity in graduation rates between males and females. The largest gaps between males and females was in 7th grade English language arts (ELA) where 64% of females achieved proficiency compared to 47% of males. The disparities in reading/ELA proficiency rates at all of the grade levels were as follows:

• 3rd:   37% females versus 29% males
• 4th:   36% females versus 21% males
• 5th:   52% females versus 40% males
• 6th:   53% females versus 37% males
• 7th:   64% females versus 47% males
• 8th:   75% females versus 61% males 
• 10th:  80% females versus 70% males

In mathematics, gender disparities were much smaller with an average 2.8 point difference in proficiency rates at each grade level. Males actually performed equal to or better than females at two grade levels in this subject area. At the third grade level, males and females had the same proficiency rate in math (38%) while on the 4th grade exam, males did better than females by a single percentage point (22% females vs. 23% for females). Overall, females in Brockton had a 37% proficiency rate in math while males had a 34% proficiency rate. The disparities in mathematics at all grade levels are as follows: 

• 3rd:  38% females versus 38% males
• 4th:  22% females versus 23% males
• 5th:  36% females versus 33% males
• 6th:  35% females versus 30% males
• 7th:  33% females versus 28% males
• 8th:  34% females versus 32% males
• 10th: 62% females versus 60% males

On the 2011 science MCAS exam, which was only taken in grades 5, 8 and 10, females only had a higher proficiency rate on the 8th grade exam (17% versus 14%). On the 5th grade science exam, males had a 20% proficiency rate compared to 18% for females and on the 10th grade exam both genders had a 50% proficiency rate. The average difference in proficiency rates on the science exam was 1.5 percentage points.

*All Data Taken From: http://profiles.doe.mass.edu/mcas/subgroups2.aspx?linkid=25&orgcode=00440000&fycode=2011&orgtypecode=5&

The Power of Low Expectations

An interesting psychological study published by Wood, Kaplan and McLoyd (2007) raised an interesting point about the power of expectations as it relates to academic achievement. Research has indicated that for African Americans, parental education-related expectations predict their children's own expectations even when controlling for academic achievement. The messages that African American parents convey to their children and the perception of these messages influence the child's future education orientation (Kerpelman,  Eryigit, & Stephens, 2008). Based in part on the idea that parental expectations are linked to youth expectations and that African Americans perceive more barriers for males than females, the researchers hypothesized that African American parents held lower expectations for the future attainment of sons compared to daughters. As a result of these lower expectations, Wood, Kaplan and McLoyd (2007) expected that African American males would hold lower expectations for their educational attainment than females. The study consisted of African American children ranging in age from 6 to 16 with a median age of 12.3 years. Parental expectations were based on the question "how far do you actually think your child will go in school?"

The results showed that African American parents did tend to hold lower expectations for the future educational attainment of their sons compared to their daughters. Parents expected 47% of males but 61% of females to complete college or beyond. As a result, males between the ages of 9 and 16 reported lower expectations for themselves than did females. Similarly, African American males were less sure that they would attend and complete college than females. The researchers found that the link between the youths' gender and self-expectations were fully mediated by parental expectations. Interestingly, they also found that the gender gap in expectation did not increase as a function of age; nine- and ten-year-old African American males already had lower expectations than females. Gender differences in expectations were most pronounced at the lowest income levels. These factors likely contribute to the finding that a significant number of African American males disidentify with education earlier and more often than their female counterparts. While teachers are indeed an important part of the educational process, parents seem to be the more important factor affecting academic achievement. It is imperative that parents become and remain involved in the education of their children (of both genders) in order to avoid the negative outcomes associated with poor achievement.

References:

Kerpelman, J. L., Eryigit, S., & Stephens, C. J. (2007). African American adolescents’ future education orientation: associations with self-efficacy, ethnic identity, and perceived parental support. Journal of Youth Adolescence, 37, 997-1008. 

Wood, D., Kaplan, R., & McLoyd, V. C. (2007). Gender differences in the educational expectations of urban, low-income African American Youth: The role of Parents and the School. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 36, 417-427.

Women Surpass Men in Advanced Degrees

According to a recent article in the Wall Street Journal, for the first time women have surpassed men in obtaining both bachelor's and advanced degrees. It was suggested that a combination of factors including women's increased enrollment in colleges in the 1980s and a steady decline in stay-at-home mothers has contributed to the current demographics of higher education. Specifically, among women 25 and older, 10.6 million women have a master's degree or higher compared to 10.5 million men. Women do still lag behind men in business, science and engineering degrees. In terms of undergraduate degrees however, 20.1 million women have a bachelor's degree compared to 18.7 million men; women first surpassed men in this area in 1996.

When one looks specifically at African Americans, the gap between men and women is much more striking. While 56% of African American females nationally graduate from high school, only 42% of their male counterparts graduate. In some states, only 29% of African American males receive a high school diploma. Due to this gender gap in high school graduation rates, women receive advanced degrees at high rates than men. African American women receive 63% of bachelor's degrees, 67% of master's and 60% of doctoral degrees received by African Americans. 

Other statistics:

-Hispanic women are 1.5 times more likely to receive an associate's, bachelor's and master's degree than a  Hispanic male.

-In 1977-78, Asian men were 1.1 times more likely to receive a bachelor's degree than an Asian female. By 1999-2000, Asian women were 1.2 times more likely to receive a bachelor's.

-In 1977-78, 101 white women received master's per 100 white men. By 1999-2000, 151  white women per 100 white men receive master's

-The number of African American women receiving associate's degrees has increased dramatically; Per 100 African American men, it was 142 women in the 1970s, 169 in the 1980s and 188 in the late 1990s

The gender gap in educational attainment has led to a number of books about a potential crisis facing males in schools. Some of these books include The Trouble with Boys... by Peg Tyre and Boys Adrift: The Five Factors Growing the Epidemic of Unmotivated Boys and Underachieving Young Men by Leonard Sax. While the 1960s and 1970s saw the rise of feminism and women's rights, the tide has turned to helping boys succeed given the current statistics. The current economic climate requires at least a high school degree, but more likely a college degree in to obtain a job so it is paramount that the reasons that males become disengaged with the academic environment are pinpointed and specifically targeted.