ABSTRACT

Science competencies acquired at early years are basic and influence on children’s later development. Gender differences in these early science competencies may explain the often-reported gender differences in later science abilities. Research in this field was not usually focused on pre-schoolers. In this study, we focus on the interaction between five- to six-year-old pre-schoolers and a researcher while they work on tasks about physics and astronomy in three experiments. Participants were five- to six-year-old children attending preschool in Sevilla (Spain) representing the full range of socioeconomic backgrounds. Over the course of experiments, an increase in the students’ number of right answers occurred. Results supported that pre-schoolers’ early science competencies are characterized by gender equality and do not explain later-reported gender differences. However, the findings showed that girls are not inclined towards scientific careers, even if they have the same scientific performance as boys.

摘要

早年获得的科学能力是基础，影响孩子以后的发展。这些早期科学能力的性别差异可以解释后期科学能力中经常报告的性别差异。该领域的研究通常不关注学龄前儿童。在这项研究中，我们关注 5 到 6 岁学龄前儿童和研究人员在三个实验中从事物理和天文学任务时的互动。参与者是在塞维利亚（西班牙）上学前班的 5 至 6 岁儿童，代表了各种社会经济背景。在实验过程中，学生正确答案的数量有所增加。结果支持学龄前儿童的早期科学能力以性别平等为特征，并不能解释后来报告的性别差异。然而，研究结果表明，女孩并不倾向于从事科学职业，即使她们的科学表现与男孩相同。