• Widening educational gap in mathematics as boys increasingly outperform girls across several countries
• International studies link the decline to classroom and psychological factors emerging from early schooling years

A new international report issued by UNESCO in cooperation with the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA) has highlighted a renewed widening of the gender gap in mathematics, after years of relative improvement in performance differences between boys and girls.

The report, titled “Girls Losing Ground: The Widening Gender Gap in Mathematics,” indicates that girls’ performance is increasingly falling behind boys across a growing number of education systems worldwide, particularly in early school stages, with the trend continuing into lower secondary education.

Based on TIMSS data covering the period between 1995 and 2023, the analysis found that 81% of education systems recorded a clear male advantage in fourth-grade mathematics in 2023, compared with 52% in 2019 and 39% in 2015, reflecting a rapid expansion of the gap.

It also showed that the share of education systems where girls are more likely to fail to reach the minimum international benchmark in mathematics rose to 21% in 2023, up from 4% in 2019 and 2% in 2015, indicating growing challenges in early learning stages.

At the same time, 85% of education systems were found to show male advantage in reaching advanced levels in mathematics, suggesting that the gap extends beyond average performance to top achievement levels.

The report notes that the divide first becomes visible by the end of primary education, making early intervention in the first years of schooling essential, as it continues into lower secondary education in varying degrees across countries.

It further explains that the issue is not linked to innate ability, but to educational and behavioural factors, including gender stereotypes, teacher expectations, classroom dynamics, and lower confidence among girls in mathematics.

These factors affect participation and engagement in mathematical activities and contribute to differences in long-term academic outcomes, despite rising school enrollment rates among girls globally.

The report also highlights that women account for only 36% of STEM graduates, a figure that has remained largely unchanged over the past decade, reflecting persistent challenges in transitioning from education to the labor market.

It calls for early and sustained interventions, including strengthening girls’ confidence in mathematics from the early years, improving teaching methods to ensure gender equality, training teachers in inclusive practices, and closely monitoring gaps through disaggregated data.

The report further emphasizes the need to address stereotypes within families and societies to support greater participation of girls in science and technology fields in the future.