Why do girls struggle in science classes while boys excel?

[GodsChild086]

UGH...Can't stand it ANYMORE!

Hi everyone,

Maybe this thread I'm about to post is not about Science, but it was the PF Lounge: General Discussion was the only proper category that I can stick this thread in. Okay, here goes the problem.

I'm not being a racist, or stereotypical, sexist, or mean...nothing like that. It's just that in my Physics 30 and Chem 30 class, all of the girls seem like they don't even understand the concept in these two courses. Like, no offence, but sometimes I do think that "guys are smarter than girls" cause the guys in my class seem to understand the stuff, while everyday, I get stuck w/about 15 girls coming up to me for help, and it gets really crazy! Like, where I'm getting at is that maybe guys are more into Science related things...well, some are and some aren't. But yeah, it just seems like the guys in my class are actually understanding the concepts covered in this course, while I'm like the only girl who actually also understands the concepts too. In my Physics class, I have the highest mark actually, with a 95, and then comes this other guy with an average of 89, and the next highest is also a guy, with a 78. And the next highest is 64, and everyone else is below. This is also similar to my Chemistry class.

I don't mind helping others, but sometimes it just gets really bad in the class, and then I don't have anytime to do my homework, and while I'm at home, the phone rings non-stop, and it drives me crazy! And like, as a Christian I usually turn to God for help...things have cooled off...(sort of). Like, I can prove that I'm not lying about all the stuff I'm saying cause even my parents are going crazy too. They can't stand me being on the phone, and I can't stand myself when I talk for hours on the phone either. Although, I know that there are people better than me at Physics and other subjects. I am not showing off, so do not worry. I'm a type of person that does not show off anyway, cause I know it makes me look stupid. I just need help, which is why I am posting this thread. Can anybody help?

I wish we had tutorial classes at our school, so that I wouldn't be so swamped every class. The teacher notices too, and we're trying to figure something out. Cause like, seriously, I just can't take this anymore!

 

[selfAdjoint]

But if you go to a lit-crit class, it's the girls who understand better and the boys who need help. Girls are statistically much better at verbal tasks and boys at mechanical reasoning.

 

[recon]

GodsChild086, it would have been better if you had started the post by stating very clearly that you were a girl.

I used to have the same problem when I was 9 years old. Believe me, the only way out of the problem is to just say 'no' to them. Surely they'll understand that you've got other stuff to deal with. I've lost the friendship of a few people who were not very understanding, but I have since found that this was a small price to pay.

 

[GodsChild086]

Yeah...agreed. That I know...cause in my English class, the girls are a lot better at writing essays, paraphrasing Shakespeare, talking about life experiences, etc. But in my Physics, Chem, and even Bio class, it's not like that! :-S

 

[Moonbear]

Have you considered that maybe most of the guys in your class aren't so good at physics either, just the women are willing to ask for help from someone they see is doing well? Afterall, if the third and fourth highest scores are a 78 and 64, it doesn't seem much of anyone other than you and that one other person with the 89 average are mastering the subject. If you're tired of playing tutor, you should suggest to those who want to keep asking you questions that they ask the professor instead, and perhaps form a study group that meets once or twice a week for an hour. Perhaps you could show up for their study group and help out then, when it's a limited amount of time, instead of helping answer all their questions individually. Most likely, they all can learn from each other's questions and from the exercise of looking up/working out the answers for themselves.

There is a lot of disparity among students in introductory courses due to quite varied experiences in high school. Some students may have had two physics courses in high school already (the physics class most students take, and then an AP level class), while others may have had no physics at all. I often find that difficulty understanding physics can be traced to difficulty understanding calculus as well. It may be insufficient preparation in calculus that is giving them trouble. Too often students are permitted to take introductory physics with calculus as a co-requisite rather than a pre-requisite, such that the physics course quickly outpaces the calculus course in the math required to derive equations and leaves students quite lost. I sure had that problem in high school, when I was taking physics along with trig and the physics teacher was requiring us to use calculus. I didn't even know it was calculus to realize why I didn't understand how he was solving the equations. It all made perfect sense once I took calculus (I should have shot my guidance counselor for suggesting I take physics before calculus).

 

[Tsu]

Tell them to go to their computer and go here:
https://www.physicsforums.com/forumdisplay.php?f=15
for high school help

or here
https://www.physicsforums.com/forumdisplay.php?f=36
for college help

 

[Moonbear]

Tell them to go to their computer and go here:
https://www.physicsforums.com/forumdisplay.php?f=15
for high school help

or here
https://www.physicsforums.com/forumdisplay.php?f=36
for college help

Um, yeah, that would have been the obvious suggestion, wouldn't it have been?

 

[Tsu]

I'm a student of the obvious...

 

[Gokul43201]

GodsChild086, it would have been better if you had started the post by stating very clearly that you were a girl.

Look who's talking !

GC, I think you should just tell the others to quit partying and start taking school more seriously. There are several places to go to for help with schoolwork, and bugging you all the time should just not be an option.

Let them bug us instead, as Tsu's suggested.

 

[the number 42]

Girls are statistically much better at verbal tasks and boys at mechanical reasoning.

A meta-analysis (Hyde & Linn, 1988) found only a negligable advantage to girls for verbal skills. Another meta-analysis (Hyde et al. 1990) found that for maths ability there is a tiny advantage, again to the girls! But as Disreali said: "There's lies, damn lies, and damn stupid rotten fricken lies".

 

[FredGarvin]

Just a word of advice GodsChild...if you are ranting about people who are "not so bright," please don't actually write the word "like" in your sentences (unless you are talking about how much you actually like something).

There will always be people that just don't get it. Male and female alike.

 

[the number 42]

Just a word of advice GodsChild...if you are ranting about people who are "not so bright," please don't actually write the word "like" in your sentences (unless you are talking about how much you actually like something).

Like, WOAH. That's just so, like, nasty.

 

[the number 42]

It reminds of a few weeks ago, an American girl approached me to ask me something. She was apparently taken aback by my answer, because she turned to her friend and said: "And I was like - WOAH", as if she was telling her friend about something that had happened in the past and I was no longer there. So you can imagine my reaction when she turned back to me to ask me something else. I was like - WOAH!...

Have any other members been like - WOAH! recently?

 

[Moonbear]

It reminds of a few weeks ago, an American girl approached me to ask me something. She was apparently taken aback by my answer, because she turned to her friend and said: "And I was like - WOAH", as if she was telling her friend about something that had happened in the past and I was no longer there. So you can imagine my reaction when she turned back to me to ask me something else. I was like - WOAH!...

Have any other members been like - WOAH! recently?

LOL! That's like, so, oh m'gosh! Maybe she didn't think you would be fluent in English and thought she could say anything in front of you.

 

[franznietzsche]

The valley girl speech is hurting my soul. I beg you, please desist, lest i retaliate by using a dialect that is neither spanish or english, but a crude mixture of both that seems to be very popular in southern california.

 

[Moonbear]

The valley girl speech is hurting my soul. I beg you, please desist, lest i retaliate by using a dialect that is neither spanish or english, but a crude mixture of both that seems to be very popular in southern california.

LOL! That would be Spanglish, si?

 

[JasonRox]

This may come off as rude, but sometimes "God" tells me to send a reality check, so as his "messenger" I must do as commanded.

You know you're a loser when you post your grade on the net (or anywhere) as certification of understanding Physics or any class related to that grade. I don't give a **** what grade you got.

You know you're a loser when you know the next top 5 marks in the class.

Here are some pointers:

First, you need to get over yourself. You act like your the only one who can help these people. The kid with ~60% can do just as much work and teaching as you. The collaboration between two students is what counts. People forget to realize that you don't need to have questions and answers to learn. Talk about interesting stuff in class, which is easy considering its Physics. Physics allows you to talk about stuff like how fast should you drink your hot chocolate in a room of x temperature, etc...

Second, we don't need to know your religious basis. We, or maybe just I, don't care. The reason why I don't care is simple, everyone helps everyone. There is no specific religion involved with helping another. You can turn to God for help, but the problem is that God won't say no for you. If anything, God is trying to tell you that you will never be able to take on a task like his. (i.e. helping everyone) Therefore, he is teaching you to say NO, and stay within what is REALISTIC.

Third, tell the teacher he/she sucks.

 

[franznietzsche]

This may come off as rude, but sometimes "God" tells me to send a reality check, so as his "messenger" I must do as commanded.

You know you're a loser when you post your grade on the net (or anywhere) as certification of understanding Physics or any class related to that grade. I don't give a **** what grade you got.

You know you're a loser when you know the next top 5 marks in the class.

Here are some pointers:

First, you need to get over yourself. You act like your the only one who can help these people. The kid with ~60% can do just as much work and teaching as you. The collaboration between two students is what counts. People forget to realize that you don't need to have questions and answers to learn. Talk about interesting stuff in class, which is easy considering its Physics. Physics allows you to talk about stuff like how fast should you drink your hot chocolate in a room of x temperature, etc...

Second, we don't need to know your religious basis. We, or maybe just I, don't care. The reason why I don't care is simple, everyone helps everyone. There is no specific religion involved with helping another. You can turn to God for help, but the problem is that God won't say no for you. If anything, God is trying to tell you that you will never be able to take on a task like his. (i.e. helping everyone) Therefore, he is teaching you to say NO, and stay within what is REALISTIC.

Third, tell the teacher he/she sucks.

1) she posted the 5 lower marks, not the 5 higher.
2) i think the point is she doesn't want to help them
3)i'm glad i don't know you in person, we'd be trying to kill each other.

 

[franznietzsche]

LOL! That would be Spanglish, si?

When i asnwer the phone and the first thing i hear is "Speake Spanish?" I'm immediately irritated.

 

[the number 42]

This may come off as rude, but sometimes "God" tells me to send a reality check, so as his "messenger" I must do as commanded.

You know you're a loser when you post your grade on the net (or anywhere) as certification of understanding Physics or any class related to that grade. I don't give a **** what grade you got.

You know you're a loser when you know the next top 5 marks in the class.

Here are some pointers:

First, you need to get over yourself. You act like your the only one who can help these people. The kid with ~60% can do just as much work and teaching as you. The collaboration between two students is what counts. People forget to realize that you don't need to have questions and answers to learn. Talk about interesting stuff in class, which is easy considering its Physics. Physics allows you to talk about stuff like how fast should you drink your hot chocolate in a room of x temperature, etc...

Second, we don't need to know your religious basis. We, or maybe just I, don't care. The reason why I don't care is simple, everyone helps everyone. There is no specific religion involved with helping another. You can turn to God for help, but the problem is that God won't say no for you. If anything, God is trying to tell you that you will never be able to take on a task like his. (i.e. helping everyone) Therefore, he is teaching you to say NO, and stay within what is REALISTIC.

Third, tell the teacher he/she sucks.

Master! You have come to reclaim the world! (I didn't realize that a drop in high-school grades was going to be one of the four horsemen) but never mind that, oh master! Master!

 

[the number 42]

Maybe she didn't think you would be fluent in English and thought she could say anything in front of you.

In my posts I try to edit out the gibberish, ums, ahs, ers, profanity, BO, etc. When I think about, it she had a right to be like - WOAH. I was probably lucky she wasn't downright Eeyouuu.

 

[Invisible]

This may come off as rude, but sometimes "God" tells me to send a reality check, so as his "messenger" I must do as commanded.

You know you're a loser when you post your grade on the net (or anywhere) as certification of understanding Physics or any class related to that grade. I don't give a **** what grade you got.

You know you're a loser when you know the next top 5 marks in the class.

Wow, that is a little rude. But I understand what you are saying. How is she a loser if she knows the next top 5 marks in the class?

 

[JasonRox]

Wow, that is a little rude. But I understand what you are saying. How is she a loser if she knows the next top 5 marks in the class?

What does it matter what their mark is?

How do you find out from someone you don't know? Find out their student number like a loser?

Also, when I talk to other students, I'm not concerned about their mark. It sounds like she is saying that this guy has 67%, so he doesn't know what he's doing. I bet if she talked to the guy first without knowing the grade, she probably wouldn't have guessed his/her grade to be that low.

I tutored a student who had an A in the class, but just wanted a tutor to learn more and understand better. A smart person who knows that an A means ****.

The school system should be based on a Pass/Fail basis. Fail is below 50 and pass is above 50, but the mark isn't posted. You have no clue how much better you are than anyone. You have to on your own decide whether you know your **** or not. For scholarships, they can have interviews. You might have an A, but when it comes to talking about the subject a week later in the interview, but you forgot everything... well your out of luck for $$$.

The person with 67% might only know 67%, but a year from now, the person might still know 67%, meanwhile the chick with 87% drops from 87->55%.

Who's the smart one now?

Put less emphasis on what other people got, and your position in the classroom.

 

[JasonRox]

Note: Coming from a board full of honour students... it's not surprising someone's ego hits me once in awhile.

Note: Yes, I'm an honour student. An honour student without my mark posted on my forehead for the world to see.

 

[Math Is Hard]

When i asnwer the phone and the first thing i hear is "Speake Spanish?" I'm immediately irritated.

That was me calling. I was just kidding around.

 

[Tsu]

Note: Coming from a board full of honour students... it's not surprising someone's ego hits me once in awhile.

Note: Yes, I'm an honour student. An honour student without my mark posted on my forehead for the world to see.

Until now.

 

[franznietzsche]

That was me calling. I was just kidding around.

You call five times a day every day? Dang MIH, how much pizza does one person need?

 

[Math Is Hard]

You call five times a day every day? Dang MIH, how much pizza does one person need?

It's been raining for two straight weeks now. I'm just so BORED!

 

[franznietzsche]

It's been raining for two straight weeks now. I'm just so BORED!

I'm surprised i haven't drowned in this rain. Seriously i got so drenched walking abck form the library tonight NOTHING was dry. Somehow i managed not to drown despite being completely surrounded by falling water. I don't understand it.

And I hate the rain. And i hate Mondays. So rainy Mondays are really really high on my s*** list.

 

[Math Is Hard]

I am so with you. Rainy days and Mondays always get me down.
This weather is putting me in a nasty mood. I didn't even make it to class today because it took me almost two freaking hours to get to the campus due to the jacked up traffic - it's normally only a 20 minute drive.

 

[franznietzsche]

I am so with you. Rainy days and Mondays always get me down.
This weather is putting me in a nasty mood. I didn't even make it to class today because it took me almost two freaking hours to get to the campus due to the jacked up traffic - it's normally only a 20 minute drive.

I live on campus and i don't own an umbrella and its a bloody monsoon. And i had to carry a baritone sax around part of the day. Not cool. So Add tired (its heavy) + drenched + hungry +a crapload of homework stil to do = evil rainy monday.

 

[ek]

I would bet my right foot this guy lives in Alberta and also that his parents voted for Stephen Harper's Tories in the last election.

Guarentee it.

 

[franznietzsche]

I would bet my right foot this guy lives in Alberta and also that his parents voted for Stephen Harper's Tories in the last election.

Guarentee it.

What are you talking about?

 

[Moonbear]

I am so with you. Rainy days and Mondays always get me down.
This weather is putting me in a nasty mood. I didn't even make it to class today because it took me almost two freaking hours to get to the campus due to the jacked up traffic - it's normally only a 20 minute drive.

I don't have any particular dislike for Mondays, I've always thought that was a bit unfair to Mondays to single them out as bad days like that. But, I am getting sick and tired of gray and rainy days! If I wanted to put up with weather like this, I'd have moved to Seattle.

 

[Invisible]

What does it matter what their mark is?

How do you find out from someone you don't know? Find out their student number like a loser?

Also, when I talk to other students, I'm not concerned about their mark. It sounds like she is saying that this guy has 67%, so he doesn't know what he's doing. I bet if she talked to the guy first without knowing the grade, she probably wouldn't have guessed his/her grade to be that low.

I tutored a student who had an A in the class, but just wanted a tutor to learn more and understand better. A smart person who knows that an A means ****.

The school system should be based on a Pass/Fail basis. Fail is below 50 and pass is above 50, but the mark isn't posted. You have no clue how much better you are than anyone. You have to on your own decide whether you know your **** or not. For scholarships, they can have interviews. You might have an A, but when it comes to talking about the subject a week later in the interview, but you forgot everything... well your out of luck for $$$.

The person with 67% might only know 67%, but a year from now, the person might still know 67%, meanwhile the chick with 87% drops from 87->55%.

Who's the smart one now?

Put less emphasis on what other people got, and your position in the classroom.

Oh, I see what you're saying now. Actually, I sort of got the impression that she was showing off. And no, I don't give a **** what her mark is or what the other students' marks are either. Even the person with 67 could get his/her mark up.

In my class, there is a person who was doing really good...I'm not going to say any marks cause I don't want to be a loser like the GodsChild086 person. But yes, he was always getting the good marks, and now he's in the range of failing. So my point is that I think the GodsChild086 person should not even have posted this thread, but cause she won't know when her mark will drop considerably. But then again, I don't care, and I don't give a **** either.

 

[JasonRox]

Oh, I see what you're saying now. Actually, I sort of got the impression that she was showing off. And no, I don't give a **** what her mark is or what the other students' marks are either. Even the person with 67 could get his/her mark up.

In my class, there is a person who was doing really good...I'm not going to say any marks cause I don't want to be a loser like the GodsChild086 person. But yes, he was always getting the good marks, and now he's in the range of failing. So my point is that I think the GodsChild086 person should not even have posted this thread, but cause she won't know when her mark will drop considerably. But then again, I don't care, and I don't give a **** either.

Exactly.

This won't all happen in high school either. I have met people that received full scholarships, but are now on probation because they flunked out of university. Don't ask your teacher if you know your stuff, ask yourself.

 

[singleton]

Talk of pass/fail system: I would advocate a pass/fail system if it required at least an 80% (if not 90%) to pass. Realistically if you can't achieve an 80% grade would you really consider yourself learned in that particular subject? Do you want someone who was only "right" half of the time? ;)

Edit: I think it is unacceptable to call GodsChild a "loser" merely if you disagree with them and their thread, regardless of how you feel.

 

[franznietzsche]

Talk of pass/fail system: I would advocate a pass/fail system if it required at least an 80% (if not 90%) to pass. Realistically if you can't achieve an 80% grade would you really consider yourself learned in that particular subject? Do you want someone who was only "right" half of the time? ;)

Edit: I think it is unacceptable to call GodsChild a "loser" merely if you disagree with them and their thread, regardless of how you feel.

Yeah but then the schools here would have even higher failure rates, and politicians would lose their jobs because idiot parents buy into the liberal agenda that their kid is capable of anything when he/she plainly isn't. [/rant]

 

[singleton]

Yeah but then the schools here would have even higher failure rates, and politicians would lose their jobs because idiot parents buy into the liberal agenda that their kid is capable of anything when he/she plainly isn't. [/rant]

That is my opinion IF they implement a pass/fail scheme though. If you want to have a system that decides what is "learned" and what isn't...then by all means use at least an 80% IMO.

Side note: Part of me would like to see schools offer courses with no prerequisities and no grading system. Then students could learn without the fear and pressure of "performance". I wouldn't suggest these people obtain professional certifications or degrees--rather that it would be a nice option if they could just "learn". I would never want these people (who haven't been formally tested on their knowledge) to be actually working in the field :P

Realistically they couldn't handle that much influx of people though... so they use the next best thing to prioritize incoming students (your GPA).

Thats just a minor opinion though. Of course we would all like to be in classes with highly intelligent peers where they all take school seriously (with a personal vested interest). Doing teamwork and projects would be great. Collaboration among students would be amazing. But that is unlikely to happen anytime soon

 

[franznietzsche]

Of course we would all like to be in classes with highly intelligent peers where they all take school seriously (with a personal vested interest). Doing teamwork and projects would be great. Collaboration among students would be amazing. But that is unlikely to happen anytime soon

I have yet to meet such people.

To be perfectly i honest. I no longer take school seriously. Structured education is a waste of time. Something i ahve to do because the powers that be say so. It would be much more productive to learn independently at my own my pace. Right now I'm learning far more doing independent work with a professor on Astrophysics than the basic required course that i ahve to take coul ever teach me. I could teach some of the classes I'm forced to take.

"Classes will dull your mind and eliminate the potential for authentic creativity"

 

[singleton]

I have yet to meet such people.

To be perfectly i honest. I no longer take school seriously. Structured education is a waste of time. Something i ahve to do because the powers that be say so. It would be much more productive to learn independently at my own my pace. Right now I'm learning far more doing independent work with a professor on Astrophysics than the basic required course that i ahve to take coul ever teach me. I could teach some of the classes I'm forced to take.

"Classes will dull your mind and eliminate the potential for authentic creativity"

I have not been in any class like that either--but if you culled the population using GPA then you'd probably (not always) be left with the brighter students.

Yes of course some people will always maintain that your GPA doesn't matter. We are all modest Good Will Huntings (kidding). We purposely have poor grades
In reality the majority of the time a student with a 3.8+ GPA knows his stuff much more than a student with a barely passing GPA who "knows everything" but, you know, just doesn't want high marks heh. Give me a break

I'll agree that some of the most significant learning you will do is on your own. School is only meant as an introduction to get your feet wet. You must carry yourself and invest much of your own time to excel in any subject pretty much.

 

[franznietzsche]

In reality the majority of the time a student with a 3.8+ GPA knows his stuff much more than a student with a barely passing GPA who "knows everything" but, you know, just doesn't want high marks heh. Give me a break

I never said that. I said that the education system in the US, as it is, is a waste of time.

I'll agree that some of the most significant learning you will do is on your own. School is only meant as an introduction to get your feet wet. You must carry yourself and invest much of your own time to excel in any subject pretty much.

What school is meant as, and what it is are two very different things.

 

[singleton]

I never said that. I said that the education system in the US, as it is, is a waste of time.

It was a culmination of my thoughts and what others have said in this particular thread. It wasn't directed at your comment even though I used one large response heh.

 

[JasonRox]

I have yet to meet such people.

To be perfectly i honest. I no longer take school seriously. Structured education is a waste of time. Something i ahve to do because the powers that be say so. It would be much more productive to learn independently at my own my pace. Right now I'm learning far more doing independent work with a professor on Astrophysics than the basic required course that i ahve to take coul ever teach me. I could teach some of the classes I'm forced to take.

"Classes will dull your mind and eliminate the potential for authentic creativity"

Same here. I don't take it seriously anymore either.