High School Mathematics Preparation and Sex Differences in Quantitative Abilities

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Abstract
A sample of 2,093 students was selected from all Washington State high school juniors taking a pre-college test battery in spring 1973. For the total group of males vs. the total group of females data analyses indicated that males took significantly more coursework in three of four mathematics sub-areas studied (algebra, geometry, and advanced mathematics), significantly more physics coursework, and scored higher than females on all 6 subtests studied (four quantitative, one spatial ability, and one mechanical reasoning), while females earned significantly higher overall mathematics GPA. However, after statistically controlling for the amount of coursework taken in the five areas (four mathematics subdivisions plus physics), sex differences disappeared on two of the four quantitative tests and on the test of spatial ability.

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