Gender differentials and the mathematics performance of grade 10 to 12 learners at the dilanedi schools

Abstract

The aim of the study is to analyse how gender as a variable continues to have an impact on the performance of learners in Grade 10 to 12 mathematics, even at the Dinaledi Schools. The sample has the following characteristics: 592 Grade 10 learners, comprising 254 boys and 338 girls; 2 415 Grade 11 learners, comprising 1 018 girls and 1397 boys; and 1 636 boys and 611 girls in Grade 12. The study uses secondary data collected by means of a mathematics questionnaire on different cognitive levels to diagnose learners' difficulties in mathematics. The items of questionnaire were clustered into five constructs, Manipulative Procedural Knowledge, Logical Reasoning, Problem Solving, Number Concept and Function concept. The study employed the one-way analyses of variance and t-test, testing the hypothesis that there is no difference in the mean scores of boys and girls in the given construct. The results showed that there is no significant difference in boys’ and girls’ mean scores for all the constructs in both Grade 10 and 11. However, in the Grade 12 class there was a signification difference in the mean scores of boys and girls in manipulative procedural knowledge and function concept in favour of boys.