Qualities such as assertiveness are valued in boys and looked down-upon in girls and these gender roles are often shown in schools; boys tend to ask and answer more questions in the classroom and boys tend to partake in more hands-on activities, such as labs, while girls are usually stuck with the responsibility of writing things down or doing readings (7). These behaviours and roles may be responsible for the difference that is noticeable in different classes; boys tend to pursue STEM related programs (science, technology, engineering, and math and computer science), while girls tend to pursue non-STEM related programs such as health care, english, and social sciences (3). The primary research that was conducted supported this finding, as it showed that 70% of students planned on pursuing education paths that are stereotypical of their …show more content…
Because of the gender roles that girls are raised with to put others before themselves, they tend to do well in courses to please other people, such as parents and teachers. However, when they get to university, girls lack that personal connection with their teachers, meaning they could lose their motivation to do well (7). On the other hand, boys are taught in school that they are naturally talented and smart, while girls are taught that they have to work harder to achieve the same results. Since boys are taught that they are naturally smart, if they do not do well in a program at university, they may give up or switch majors instead of altering their techniques and study habits