Gender differences in achievement in an inquiry-based learning precalculus course

Abstract

The authors conducted a two-semester quasi-experimental study in which each author taught a traditional lecture-based section of precalculus and a section using an inquiry-based approach called a Modified Moore Method in which the students worked through and presented the course material. A common final exam was used to compare student achievement. The results were compared for the overall population and by each instructor. Gender proved to be an important variable with the females performing significantly better in the Modified Moore Method sections than their counterparts in the traditional sections while there were no significant differences for the males.