Confidence in Mathematics and its Consequences: Gender differences among Israeli Jewish and Arab youth

Abstract

Gender differences in mathematics learning in the high school serve as a basis for achievement in mathematical disciplines in higher education, as well as in social mobility in Western society. The main findings reported here are that, in the Jewish sector in Israel, even when the level of mathematics is held constant, so that the perceived degree of achievement in mathematics of boys and girls is similar, girls are nevertheless found to report a lower degree of self-confidence in mathematics than boys on a number of different measures. Paradoxically, the educational system in the Arab sector, despite its gender conservatism relative to the general Jewish sector, has succeeded in generating amongst its female students a high degree of perceived achievement and self-confidence in mathematics, which in turn increases their willingness to consider mathematically-based studies and professions in the future.