Persistence in Science Play and Gender: Findings from Early Childhood Classrooms in Ireland

ABSTRACT

The under-representation of women in science disciplines is a persistent problem for workplaces and educational policy. Girls may start to disengage early from science subjects, partly due to cultural stereotypes around science and gender. Early language interventions which introduce science activities in terms of action (or process) versus identity (or fixed ability) suggest that language impacts girls’ early engagement in science tasks. Research Findings: This study tested young children’s (N = 116) persistence on a digital “sink-or-float” game in early childhood classrooms in primary schools in Ireland (elementary school, aged four to six years). Children found the task difficult with lower accuracy scores for girls. Controlling for accuracy, boys persisted on the task for longer than girls. Introducing the game in terms of action versus identity did not impact children’s persistence on the activity. Practice or Policy: Gender differences in science play are discussed in terms of the generally low levels of accuracy on the task and the potential role of negative feedback on persistence among boys and girls. Future directions for research are highlighted, including a focus on early science engagement for young children.

Acknowledgments

We thank the children that took part in the study, their parents and teachers.

Disclosure Statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Data Availability Statement

Data is archived and available to support open science.

Correction Statement

This article has been republished with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.

Additional information

Funding

This research was made possible by funding from Science Foundation Ireland to the corresponding author.