Working Paper: NBER ID: w15238
Authors: Glenn Ellison; Ashley Swanson
Abstract: This paper uses a new data source, American Mathematics Competitions, to examine the gender gap among high school students at very high achievement levels. The data bring out several new facts. There is a large gender gap that widens dramatically at percentiles above those that can be examined using standard data sources. An analysis of unobserved heterogeneity indicates that there is only moderate variation in the gender gap across schools. The highest achieving girls in the U.S. are concentrated in a very small set of elite schools, suggesting that almost all girls with the ability to reach high math achievement levels are not doing so.
Keywords: gender gap; mathematics; education; achievement; American Mathematics Competitions
JEL Codes: I20; J16
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| Concentration of high-achieving girls in elite schools (D29) | Gender gap (J16) |
| High AMC scores (C00) | Widening gender gap (J16) |
| School environments (I24) | Gender gap (J16) |
| Demographic factors (parental education and income) (I24) | Gender gap (J16) |
| High-scoring girls distribution across schools (I24) | Gender gap (J16) |