ABSTRACT

The under-representation of women in science disciplines is a persistent problem for workplaces and educational policy. Girls may start to disengage early from science subjects, partly due to cultural stereotypes around science and gender. Early language interventions which introduce science activities in terms of action (or process) versus identity (or fixed ability) suggest that language impacts girls’ early engagement in science tasks. Research Findings: This study tested young children’s (N = 116) persistence on a digital “sink-or-float” game in early childhood classrooms in primary schools in Ireland (elementary school, aged four to six years). Children found the task difficult with lower accuracy scores for girls. Controlling for accuracy, boys persisted on the task for longer than girls. Introducing the game in terms of action versus identity did not impact children’s persistence on the activity. Practice or Policy: Gender differences in science play are discussed in terms of the generally low levels of accuracy on the task and the potential role of negative feedback on persistence among boys and girls. Future directions for research are highlighted, including a focus on early science engagement for young children.

摘要

女性在科学学科中的代表性不足是工作场所和教育政策的一个长期问题。女孩可能很早就开始脱离科学科目，部分原因是围绕科学和性别的文化刻板印象。在行动（或过程）与身份（或固定能力）方面引入科学活动的早期语言干预表明，语言影响女孩早期参与科学任务。研究成果：本研究测试了爱尔兰小学（小学，4 至 6 岁）幼儿（N = 116）对数字“沉或浮”游戏的坚持。孩子们发现这项任务很困难，女孩的准确度分数较低。在控制准确性的情况下，男孩比女孩坚持任务的时间更长。在动作与身份方面引入游戏并没有影响孩子们对活动的坚持。实践或政策：科学游戏中的性别差异是根据任务的准确性普遍较低以及负面反馈对男孩和女孩坚持不懈的潜在作用进行讨论的。强调了未来的研究方向，包括关注幼儿的早期科学参与。