Gender Disparities in STEM Throughout the Achievement Distribution With an Intersectional Analysis of the Role of Comparative Advantage in STEM

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session Saturday 1:30 pm Four Seasons Ballroom 1
  In Roundtable Session: Bridging Social and Technical Dimensions: Enhancing Diversity, Safety, and Inclusion in Engineering and Computer Science Education (Table 13)

Abstract

Gender and racial disparities in mathematically intensive STEM disciplines remain a persistent challenge in the U.S. While prior research has identified that prior STEM achievement scores are an important predictor of gender disparities in PECS majors, no research has explored these issues among intersectional race-gender subgroups. Using state-wide longitudinal data in Texas from 2016–2020 that includes 689,560 students across 1,971 public schools in Texas, this study examined gender-race intersectional disparities in math-intensive STEM majors and investigated the role of prior achievement in STEM relative to language arts. Findings revealed an overrepresentation of low achieving males in math-intensive college majors across all races, and that relatively better STEM performance in language arts did not predict students’ STEM major selection.

Authors

• Ian Thacker, University of Texas - San Antonio

• Han Bum Lee, University of Texas - San Antonio

• Joseph R. Cimpian, New York University