Friday, February 28, 2014

Discrepancies in the Development of Spatial Skills between Men and Women and the Impact on Science and Mathematics

The gender gap observed in science-related fields today is still a hot topic for deeper analysis. Moreover, there is much more data that confirms that women today are quantitatively much more uncommon in these fields. Some believe that women growing up are less confident in classrooms because men are naturally more competitive. However, given the fact that men and women are offered the same education from grade school through high school, it is still unclear as to what mechanisms are contributing to this education-related gender gap.

Lise Eliot, author of Pink Brain, Blue Brain: How Small Differences Grow into Troublesome Gaps- and What We Can Do About It, provides eye-opening observations and statistical data that help identify the causes of these gender discrepancies. Eliot points out that girls begin performing well in math and science but begin to slip as they progress through adolescence. From a statistical standpoint, recent studies suggest that less than 35% of computer science and engineering degrees have been awarded to women. On the contrary, boys start slower than girls but tend to bridge the gaps between using technology and actually understanding the basis for technology development later in adolescence. This discrepancy can be primarily attributed to the complex interaction of nature and nurture; spatial skills including visualization, trajectories, and object manipulation tend to be stronger in developing males as opposed to females. It is important to note that these spatial skills are used in almost every scientific discipline and are essential to understanding how complex scientific mechanisms work.

Nowadays, it is uncommon for boys to grow up without some exposure to video games. In regards to the nurturing aspect of spatial skills, an idea I can relate to connects the increased exposure to video games to stronger spatial skills. For instance, mentally rotating chiral molecules in organic chemistry appeared to be less of an issue with the boys in my class (who I knew played video games), as opposed to many of the girls who didn’t play many games growing up. Additionally, I can observe the same in my physics class, especially since most of the questions seem to be asked by the boys. Moreover, this agrees with Eliot’s observation that spatial skills, like any other mental task, improve with the countless hours of practice. Additionally, those exposed to spatial practice tend to portray deeper interest in that environment. Thus, it isn’t surprising that students who spend more time interacting with three-dimensional simulations are trained to be more capable of visualizing and manipulating complex scientific models. 

            Eileen Pollack, author of the New York Times article Why Are There Still So Few Women in Science?, further suggests that women tend to be less confident in these fields because of an initial disadvantage in regards to working with various types of machinery. However, this discrepancy may be resolved by integrating genders with these hands-on classes. For instance, Olin College of Engineering in Massachusetts ensures that 50% of the incoming class is composed of females. Additionally, the institution requires that all incoming students take part in a co-educational machinery class to design tools. The staff intervenes as needed to ensure the gender dynamics are fluid, which has been seen to have an enormous effect on the educational experience.

That being said, is it possible that early exposure to spatial systems focusing on a co-ed experience will help resolve many of the gender discrepancies found today? I believe it would be rather interesting to see some data on studies involving a co-ed system with a more emphasized focus on the development of spatial skills. However, more institutions need to begin making actions towards narrowing the gender gap found throughout various scientific disciplines. For instance, I think it would be valuable for grade schools to squeeze in a 30-minute class incorporating basic projectile motion in physics. High schools can build upon these skills by making some of the homework assignments more interactive. Visual learning tools including Pearson’s MasteringPhysics and MasteringChemistry have been extremely valuable in strengthening my spatial skills. Textbooks and reading documents do not offer any room for student interaction. Incorporating such a more interactive system into curriculums nationwide will provide girls with more confidence early on and thus contribute to a much higher yield of women in the fields of science and mathematics.

References:

Eliot, Lise. Pink Brain, Blue Brain: How Small Differences Grow into Troublesome Gaps--and What We Can Do about It. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2009. Print.

Pollack, Eileen. "Why Are There Still So Few Women in Science?" The New York Times. The New York Times, 3 Oct. 2013. Web. 27 Feb. 2014.



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