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RESEARCH SUMMARY: TRENDS IN GENDER ACHIEVEMENT GAPS

COMMUNITY FOUNDATION OF BROWARD — SEPTEMBER 2025 INTRODUCTION The Community Foundation of Broward (CFB) is embarking on a strategic initiative to address the gender achievement gap within Broward County's educational system. To support this work, CFB has partnered with Hanover Research (Hanover) to create a research summary looking at current trends around the gender achievement gap across the nation. This information will be used as a ﬁrst step for CFB in understanding the gender achievement gap and its causes to inform the development of strategies to close achievement gaps.

Research Question What are trends in the gender achievement gap nationwide, and what are the drivers for these trends?

TRENDS IN ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT Below, Hanover reviews trends in the achievement gap by subject area, including trends in long-term academic outcomes. Research suggests that achievement gaps vary across subjects, with boys tending to demonstrate more substantial achievement in math and girls tending to demonstrate stronger achievement in reading and literacy, as well as long-term academic outcomes such as high school graduation and postsecondary enrollment.

Reading and Literacy Research ﬁnds a substantial and persistent gender gap favoring girls across Grades K-12 in reading and writing outcomes. For example, a 2018 study by

Key Insight Gender achievement gaps vary across subjects, with girls tending to demonstrate stronger achievement in reading and literacy and boys tending to demonstrate stronger achievement in math and science.

researchers at the Stanford University Center for Education Policy Analysis (CEPA) analyzes state accountability test data from the 2008-2009 school year to the 2014-2015 school year and ﬁnds that the average school district has an achievement gap of around 0.23 standard deviations, favoring girls in average scores across Grades 3-8. 1 Data from the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) and Northwest Evaluation Association (NWEA) Measures of Academic Progress (MAP) assessments from 2019 to 2024 suggest that this gap has remained largely stable over time, with girls continuing to outperform boys at the national level. 2 The most recent NAEP reading data ﬁnds that average scores for girls in Grade 12 declined from 2019 to 2024, while scores for boys remained stable. 3

RESEARCH SUMMARY: TRENDS IN GENDER ACHIEVEMENT GAPS

and had largely disappeared for many assessments by 2019. 4 The Stanford CEPA study finds no average gender gap in state math assessment scores for Grades 3-8. More socioeconomically advantaged districts and districts with larger gender disparities in income among the adult population were more likely than other districts to have achievement gaps favoring boys. 5 However, the national achievement gap in mathematics increased again after the COVID-19 pandemic. A 2025 NWEA study examines data from the NAEP, NWEA MAP, and Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) assessments and finds that girls experienced a greater drop in scores than boys after the pandemic. This gap appears to be driven by performance decline among generally high-achieving girls. Girls at the 10th and 50th percentiles for achievement within their gender continue to outperform boys at the same percentile in the Grade 8 NAEP assessments for math and science. In contrast, girls at the 90th percentile have fallen behind boys at the 90th percentile. 6 This study also identifies a difference in trends in Grade 8 algebra enrollment. Before the pandemic, girls were somewhat more likely than boys to enroll in an algebra course by Grade 8. Enrollment rates declined for both genders from 2021 to 2022 but returned to the pre-pandemic trend for boys by 2024, effectively eliminating the gap in enrollment. 7 Although the body of research examining gender gaps in science achievement is less robust than that for math, the available evidence suggests that achievement gaps in science likewise favor boys. A 2015 study examines longitudinal data for a national sample of students who entered Kindergarten during the 1998-1999 school year and finds an achievement gap favoring boys in Grades 3 and 5 that became statistically insignificant by Grade 8. 8 Some evidence suggests that gender gaps on standardized tests are not reflected in other measures of achievement, such as course grades. A study examining course grades within Chicago Public Schools for the 2016-2017 and 2017-2018 school years finds that math course grades for female students in Grade 9 are higher on average than for male students. The authors note that teachers' grade weighting practices influence gender-based achievement gaps. 9 Similarly, a meta-analysis of course grades across STEM subjects for 1.6 million students across K-12 and higher education in North America finds that women and girls earn higher average course grades despite lower performance on standardized tests. 10

Long-Term Academic Outcomes Although achievement gaps vary across subject areas, gaps in long-term academic outcomes tend to favor women and girls. A study published by the Brookings Institution ﬁnds that graduation rates for girls in 2021 were higher © 2025 Hanover Research

RESEARCH SUMMARY: TRENDS IN GENDER ACHIEVEMENT GAPS

than for boys in each of the 36 states with publicly available data. This study also examines gender achievement gaps by race for California, Michigan, New York, Virginia, and Florida, and ﬁnds that gaps are larger for Black and Hispanic students than for White and Asian students.

The National Center for

Education Statistics reports similar national ﬁndings for the 2022-2023 school year, as shown in the ﬁgure below. The NCES also reports that more women than men were enrolled in postsecondary degree programs from 2010-2021, and projects this trend to continue through at least 2031. 12

Key Insight Gaps in long-term academic outcomes, including high school graduation and postsecondary enrollment, tend to favor girls and women.

PUBLIC HIGH SCHOOL AVERAGED FRESHMAN GRADUATION RATE BY SEX AND RACE/ETHNICITY

Two or More Races

91.6% 86.4%

White

90.1% 86.9% 84.7% 79.3%

Pacific Islander

90.4% 83.6%

Hispanic

85.5% 77.3%

Black

99.8% 97.6%

Asian 77.9% 72.7%

American Indian/Alaska Native

89.9% 84.9%

Total 0.0%

20.0% 40.0% 60.0% 80.0% 100.0% 120.0% Female

Male

Source: National Center for Education Statistics 13

POTENTIAL CAUSES OF ACHIEVEMENT GAPS Below, Hanover reviews research on potential causes of academic achievement gaps, including diﬀerences in behavior and disciplinary outcomes across genders and students’ school experiences and implicit biases. It should also be noted that some evidence suggests that gender gaps on standardized assessments are partially caused by assessment design. In general, girls tend to perform better on constructed-response assessment items while boys tend to perform better on multiple-choice assessment items. A study examining state accountability assessments for Grades 4-8 during the 2008-2009 school year ﬁnds that variation in the proportion of constructed-response and multiplechoice items across assessments explains around 25 percent of the state-level variation in gender achievement gaps. 14 © 2025 Hanover Research

RESEARCH SUMMARY: TRENDS IN GENDER ACHIEVEMENT GAPS

Behavioral and Disciplinary Factors Gender disparities appear in behavioral and engagement measures that impact academic success. For example, teachers at the end of Kindergarten report higher levels of behavioral engagement for girls, and the gap in teacher-rated behavioral engagement grows throughout Grades K-5. A 2011 study modeling data from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study: 2011 Kindergarten Cohort (ECLS-K: 2011) finds that increasing the behavioral engagement trajectory of boys to match that of girls would eliminate the Grade 5 achievement gap in reading. 15 A large body of research finds that boys continue to put forth less effort in school in the secondary grades. 16 The authors of the Chicago Public Schools study note that female students are less likely to be suspended than male students, have higher attendance rates, and report putting more effort into school work, and suggest that stronger behavioral engagement may contribute to higher grades for female students. 17 Gender disparities include disparities in discipline and diagnoses of learning disabilities related to behavior. Boys make up about 65 percent of students receiving special education services nationwide. In particular, boys are far more likely to be diagnosed with conditions like attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and reading disabilities. By adolescence, an estimated 13 percent of boys have been diagnosed with ADHD, compared to around five

Key Insight Boys are more likely than girls to face school discipline such as suspension and expulsion, and to be diagnosed with learning disabilities such as ADHD.

percent of girls. 18 An American Psychological Association (APA) review of research on boys’ behavioral challenges identiﬁes the potential causes of disparities in behavioral outcomes listed below. POTENTIAL CAUSES OF BEHAVIORAL CHALLENGES FOR BOYS Biological factors such as elevated testosterone may contribute to behavioral difficulties for some boys. Boys from marginalized backgrounds, including boys of color and boys from low-income households, may experience behavioral challenges caused by a lack of access to basic needs and experiences of racial and ethnic bias. Adverse childhood experiences such as abuse, neglect, and household instability may contribute to behavioral challenges such as aggression, impulsivity, mood instability, and distrust of adults. Boys are typically socialized to engage in behaviors that may contribute to negative school behavior, including restricting vulnerable emotions, displaying power and aggression, and valuing athletic over academic achievement. Source: American Psychological Association 19

Hyperactive behaviors may be particularly challenging in a classroom environment, where students are expected to self-regulate their behavior. 20 A longitudinal study following a sample of children born in the 1980s ﬁnds that higher rates of behavioral challenges for boys in early childhood predict © 2025 Hanover Research

RESEARCH SUMMARY: TRENDS IN GENDER ACHIEVEMENT GAPS

achievement gaps in overall educational attainment. This study also finds that the effect of behavioral challenges on future achievement is more substantial for boys than for girls with similar behavioral challenges, possibly because boys are more likely to face harsh discipline for these behaviors. 21 Disciplinary outcomes show a similar pattern. Boys are significantly more likely to face school discipline, such as suspensions and expulsions, than girls. 22 This discrepancy is consistent across racial groups, with girls of each racial or ethnic group experiencing suspension rates around 50 percent lower than boys in the same racial or ethnic group. 23 Studies in preschool settings find that Black boys are at particularly high risk for expulsion. 24 The figure below presents findings related to inequitable discipline for boys of color from the APA review. FINDINGS RELATED TO INEQUITABLE DISCIPLINE FOR BOYS OF COLOR The criminalization of boys of color occurs when teachers, peers, and other higher-status individuals misperceive the behaviors of boys of color as threatening due to racial bias and respond inappropriately, such as with disproportionate disciplinary actions and/or in ways not age-appropriate (i.e., adultification). This issue has been identified as central to school policing, which can be discriminatory to students of color, and contributes to the school-to-prison pipeline.

Key Insight Boys of color face particularly high rates of disciplinary actions, contributing to inequitable outcomes.

Starting as early as pre-school, boys experience elevated rates (as high as 82%) of suspensions and expulsions, especially boys who are Black or have a bigger body type. Boys of color experience minor and major disciplinary actions at higher rates (2 to 5x) than White male classmates. For example, suspension rates have been rising since the 1970s, and more so for boys and children of color. Boys who have been suspended or expelled more frequently are also more likely to leave high school early, which contributes to a range of social issues, such as involvement in criminal activities, incarceration, higher welfare costs, lower probability of enrolling and completing a college degree, and poor overall health. Source: American Psychological Association 25

School Experiences and Implicit Bias Some evidence suggests that experiences during school and implicit bias, rather than biological differences in cognitive traits, drive gender-based achievement gaps. A substantial body of research finds that teachers tend to attribute strong academic performance from girls to effort and strong academic performance from boys to innate ability. Conversely, teachers tend to attribute weak academic performance in girls to a lack of innate ability and weak academic performance in boys to poor effort. 26 Studies of Kindergarten teachers conducted in 1998 and 2011 find that teachers consistently rate girls’ proficiency in mathematics lower than the proficiency of boys with similar © 2025 Hanover Research

RESEARCH SUMMARY: TRENDS IN GENDER ACHIEVEMENT GAPS

behavioral and achievement profiles. 27 An experimental study of 413 math teachers assigns participants to identify explanations for performance on a set of math solutions, randomly assigned gender and race-specific names. The study finds that teachers are more likely to attribute mistakes to a lack of effort when they believe students to be male and to a lack of ability when they believe students to be female, even though there was no difference in the work they were reviewing.

This bias may result in inequitable teaching practices. For example, a teacher may encourage a boy who performs poorly on a test to work harder before the next test, while interpreting similar performance from a girl as a lack of innate ability that is beyond the student’s control. 29 The 2025 NWEA study notes that gender gaps increased after students returned to in-person learning in 2022,

Key Insight Research suggests that teachers’ implicit biases about gender and academic performance aﬀect their teaching practices, contributing to achievement gaps.

rather than during the pandemic itself, and suggests that teachers may have devoted more attention to supporting boys when students returned to classrooms due to an increase in behavioral challenges among boys. 30 Implicit biases experienced in school mirror biases and stereotypes in society at large that may influence behaviors related to academic performance. A 2014 study following a sample of boys from Pre-kindergarten through Grade 1 finds that boys begin to suppress stereotypically female behavioral traits, such as emotional articulation, and adhere to masculine behavioral norms, such as aggression and competition, in the early elementary grades. 31 The author of this study suggests that adherence to norms of masculinity may inhibit academic achievement by preventing boys from engaging in help-seeking behaviors and admitting that they do not know academic content. 32 Similarly, a study using data from the High School Longitudinal Study of 2009 finds that boys reported greater social costs to trying hard in school than girls. As a result, boys put forth less effort towards school than girls, earn lower grades, and are less likely to be placed in advanced courses. 33

Next Steps and Further Research Examine local data to identify trends in achievement within Broward County and identify potential root causes of achievement gaps.

RESEARCH SUMMARY: TRENDS IN GENDER ACHIEVEMENT GAPS

CAVEAT The publisher and authors have used their best efforts in preparing this brief. The publisher and authors make no representations or warranties with respect to the accuracy or completeness of the contents of this brief and specifically disclaim any implied warranties of fitness for a particular purpose. There are no warranties that extend beyond the descriptions contained in this paragraph. No warranty may be created or extended by representatives of Hanover Research or its marketing materials. The accuracy and completeness of the information provided herein and the opinions stated herein are not guaranteed or warranted to produce any particular results, and the advice and strategies contained herein may not be suitable for every client. Neither the publisher nor the authors shall be liable for any loss of profit or any other commercial damages, including but not limited to special, incidental, consequential, or other damages. Moreover, Hanover Research is not engaged in rendering legal, accounting, or other professional services. Clients requiring such services are advised to consult an appropriate professional.

ENDNOTES 1 Reardon, S.F., E. Fahle, et al. “Gender Achievement Gaps in U.S. School Districts.” Stanford Center for Education Policy Analysis, June 11,

2018. https://cepa.stanford.edu/content/gender-achievement-gaps-us-school-districts

2 Kuhfeld, M., K. Lewis, and G. Robinson. “Boys Regain the Advantage in Middle School STEM Skills: Post-COVID Trends in Gender

Achievement Gaps.” NWEA, May 2025. p. 3. https://www.nwea.org/uploads/boys-regain-the-advantage-in-middle-school-steam-skillspost-covid-trends-in-gender-achievement-gaps_NWEA_researchBrief.pdf 3 “NAEP Reading Grade 12 : Performance by Student Groups.” The Nation’s Report Card, 2025. p. 12. https://www.nationsreportcard.gov/reports/reading/2024/g12/performance-by-student-group/ 4 Kuhfeld, Lewis, and Robinson, Op. cit., p. 4. 5 Reardon, Fahle, et al., Op. cit. 6 Kuhfeld, Lewis, and Robinson, Op. cit., p. 4. 7 Ibid., p. 5. 8 Quinn, D.M. and N. Cooc. “Science Achievement Gaps by Gender and Race/Ethnicity in Elementary and Middle School.” Educational Researcher, August 1, 2015. https://journals.sagepub.com/stoken/rbtfl/790J71rfsEfY2/full 9 Easton, J.Q. and B. Diaz. “Lasting Differences: Math Grades and Gender. Research Report.” University of Chicago Consortium on School Research, 2023. p. 18. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED646253 10 O’Dea, R.E. et al. “Gender Differences in Individual Variation in Academic Grades Fail to Fit Expected Patterns for STEM.” Nature Communications, 9:1, September 25, 2018. https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-018-06292-0 11 Reeves, R.V. and S. Kalkat. “Racial Disparities in the High School Graduation Gender Gap.” Brookings Institution, April 18, 2023. https://www.brookings.edu/articles/racial-disparities-in-the-high-school-graduation-gender-gap/ 12 “Fast Facts: Undergraduate Enrollment.” National Center for Education Statistics, National Center for Education Statistics. https://nces.ed.gov/fastfacts/display.asp?id=98 13 Chart contents taken verbatim from: “Public High School Averaged Freshman Graduation Rate (AFGR), by Sex, Race/Ethnicity, and State or Jurisdiction: School Year 2022-23.” National Center for Education Statistics Digest of Education Statistics, National Center for Education Statistics. https://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/d24/tables/dt24_219.40.asp 14 Reardon, S.F., D. Kalogrides, et al. “The Relationship Between Test Item Format and Gender Achievement Gaps on Math and ELA Tests in Fourth and Eighth Grades.” Educational Researcher, March 27, 2018. https://journals.sagepub.com/stoken/default+domain/Ihuf6GDGR9MEw3CE22XP/full 15 Pyne, J. “Gender Test Score Gaps Under Equal Behavioral Engagement.” Educational Researcher, June 1, 2020. https://journals.sagepub.com/stoken/default+domain/YZPRDJUEDFA4PXTUAENM/full 16 Workman, J. and A. Heyder. “Gender Achievement Gaps: The Role of Social Costs to Trying Hard in High School.” Social Psychology of Education, 23:6, December 1, 2020. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11218-020-09588-6 17 Easton and Diaz, Op. cit., p. 18. 18 Heubeck, E. et al. “Boys Are Falling Behind Girls in School. See How.” Education Week, January 27, 2025. https://www.edweek.org/leadership/boys-are-falling-behind-girls-in-school-see-how/2025/01 19 Chart contents taken verbatim from: “Exploring Boys’ (Mis)Behaviors - Boys in Schools Fact Sheet.” American Psychological Association. p. 1. https://www.division51.net/bis-fact-sheet-exploring-boys-misbehaviors 20 Abrams, Z. “Boys Are Facing Key Challenges in School. Inside the Effort to Support Their Success.” Monitor on Psychology, April 1, 2023. https://www.apa.org/monitor/2023/04/boys-school-challenges-recommendations 21 Owens, J. “Early Childhood Behavior Problems and the Gender Gap in Educational Attainment in the United States.” Sociology of Education, 89:3, 2016. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6208359/ 22 Yang, M.-Y. et al. “Predictors of Early Elementary School Suspension by Gender: A Longitudinal Multilevel Analysis.” Children and Youth Services Review, 93, October 1, 2018. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0190740918303645 © 2025 Hanover Research

RESEARCH SUMMARY: TRENDS IN GENDER ACHIEVEMENT GAPS 23 Owens, J. and S.S. McLanahan. “UNPACKING THE DRIVERS OF RACIAL DISPARITIES IN SCHOOL SUSPENSION AND EXPULSION.”

Social Forces; a Scientific Medium of Social Study and Interpretation, 98:4, June 2020. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8133760/ 24 Malik, R. “New Data Reveal 250 Preschoolers Are Suspended or Expelled Every Day.” Center for American Progress, November 6, 2017. p. 250. https://www.americanprogress.org/article/new-data-reveal-250-preschoolers-suspended-expelled-every-day/ 25 Chart contents taken verbatim from: “Exploring Boys’ (Mis)Behaviors - Boys in Schools Fact Sheet,” Op. cit., p. 1. 26 Copur-Gencturk, Y., I. Thacker, and J.R. Cimpian. “An Exploratory Experiment Investigating Teachers’ Attributional Race and Gender Bias and the Moderating Effects of Personal Experience of Racial Discrimination.” Contemporary Educational Psychology, 79, December 1, 2024. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0361476X24000626 27 Cimpian, J.R. et al. “Have Gender Gaps in Math Closed? Achievement, Teacher Perceptions, and Learning Behaviors Across Two ECLS-K Cohorts.” AERA Open, 2:4, October 1, 2016. https://doi.org/10.1177/2332858416673617 28 Copur-Gencturk, Thacker, and Cimpian, Op. cit. 29 Ibid. 30 Kuhfeld, Lewis, and Robinson, Op. cit., pp. 5–6. 31 Chu, J.Y. When Boys Become Boys: Development, Relationships, and Masculinity. New York, NY, US: New York University Press, 2014. When boys become boys: Development, relationships, and masculinity. 32 Abrams, Op. cit. 33 Workman and Heyder, Op. cit.