Wisdom for the pain

Although women have more than caught up to men in terms of college attendance, meaningful and qualitative differences persist in the university experiences of men and women. Moreover, these differences often undermine the self-confidence and long-term aspirations of women, even while women continue to outperform in grades. 

Linda Sax’s new book, “The Gender Gap in College: Maximizing the Developmental Potential of Women and Men” explores different ways men and women respond to the college experience. She notes that women who frequently challenge professors’ ideas in class report higher levels of stress than outspoken men.

Equally as interesting is that women who think that faculty members don’t take their ideas seriously become less likely to think about attending graduate school and are more likely to question their mathematical abilities. 

These findings are not exactly clear. Perhaps women internalize the responses of faculty more than men. Maybe they are responding to negative stereotypes. It is hard to say. Since gender exists on one hand in the physical differences between the sexes, but more importantly in the socially constructed level of understanding, it is difficult to put a finger on just how “naturally” female these responses are.

The fact of the matter is that even while women are experiencing the highest rates of college attendance ever, there remain important, largely misunderstood barriers to female achievement. We must look beyond the guise of equality and continue to ask questions about the different ways men and women respond to learning. As long as we assume that everything is a-OK, we are letting groups of women and men slip between the cracks in our oversimplified understanding.