Regarding the first and second research questions, the combined register data was examined and the research units concerning students with no corresponding ME results altogether 8, research units were removed. One part of this missing information stems from upper-secondary school graduates from the years before , when the structure of the examination was different.
The data, however, did not contain information on the year when the ME was taken. Students admitted by entrance exam and without completing the ME e. Altogether 2, duplicates having the same personal ID were removed from the register data. However, multiple entries on the same student indicating different degree programs were not removed. Since the focus of this study was on student admission, it was important to count every entry to a degree program, regardless of any previous or later choices of the applicant.
After this, thematic categories were formed, and each response was individually placed into one of these reason categories, following the Palmer et al. In their study, Palmer et al. Within one open-ended response, a student often gave multiple reasons behind his or her mathematics choice, therefore, one response had to be divided into multiple units of analysis.
The kappa coefficient of 0. The reason categories are described in Table 1. The results showed that the student admission process of Finnish universities significantly appreciates advanced mathematics. The significance of advanced mathematics in the different university degree programs can be seen in Fig.
This reflects a situation where the needs of the Finnish universities can hardly be met by mathematically skilled upper-secondary school graduates. However, Technology 7, and Natural Sciences 6, dominated the student numbers, having also high percentages for advanced mathematics. Either of these numbers was higher than the corresponding numbers for the remaining 18 degree-offering programs.
University students in different degree programs with advanced, basic or no mathematics in ME test. In Fig. The highest numbers Fig. Technology and Medicine were dominated by Advanced Math, and the Basic Math student numbers were very low.
Understandably, there were some degree programs, like Technology 31 out of 7, , where the number of No Math students was very low. This may reflect low motivation or even a dislike for mathematics among education students, most of whom become teachers at different school and early childhood education levels.
The third research question addresses what kinds of reasons students gave for choosing basic or advanced mathematics based on the qualitative data from the survey. In total, 1, answers were given to the open-ended questions. Their distribution in the reason categories based on choosing or rejecting advanced or basic mathematics is presented in Table 3.
Many students replied that they believed Advanced Math opens more options for their future professions or places of study, although during the first semester of upper-secondary school, many did not have a clear view of their future studies or career plans.
Those who had a clear career plan towards fields that demand advanced mathematics skills were clearly aware of the usefulness of the subject. Those who enjoyed mathematics wanted to practice more. Many students reported that they wanted to challenge themselves and that solving problems was enjoyable. Many found that they had skills and competences in mathematics, and during their previous studies, they had received good marks in mathematics.
Among the upper-secondary school students in Oulu, only a very few students mentioned advice from parents or peers or teaching style or quality as important factors when choosing advanced mathematics. When we compared female and male responses, there were evident differences in between the two.
The same pattern was also evident in the responses for choosing basic mathematics. Finally, students rated their interest in the provided study fields see Table 4. In the questionnaire, students were asked to rate their interest towards the study fields of higher education on a scale of 1—5. Assessing with the t-test, we found statistically significant differences regarding every field of study.
Vice versa, towards Health and wellbeing and Education study fields, males had significantly less interest. Secondary school graduates who completed the advanced mathematics test had very good chances to be admitted to the universities. This can be concluded by direct comparison of the numbers of advanced mathematics in the register data an annual average of 8, and the matriculation examination data an annual average 10, All the degree programs appreciated mathematical skills, and some of them had problems with student admissions.
These problems were especially related to Technology and Science, where the need for mathematical skills was very high. Nonetheless, the majority of both genders acknowledged the value of the subject at the age of 16, during their first year of studies in upper-secondary school. In the cohort sample, males were interested in Information Technology, IT Communication, and Technology but showed less interest towards Health and Wellbeing and Education than their female counterparts.
This result is in line with a previous study Su et al. In future studies, these factors may need to be also considered. The current study investigated the connection between STEM subject choice, especially the choice of mathematics, conducted in upper-secondary school and their relation to university admissions. Further, we examined the gender distribution in different university degree programs from the perspective of the mathematics choice for finding out in which programs students with advanced, basic, or no mathematics end up within the universities.
Next, we analyzed the large dataset to explore what is the gender distribution in different university degree programs covering all the universities in Finland.
These results show that advanced mathematics was highly valued in Finnish universities. According to our cohort sample, the majority of students that chose studies in advanced mathematics believed in its usefulness for their future studies or career. Yet, although the Finnish girls were the topmost mathematics performers in the world Ministry of Education and Culture, , we found that their further study interests were significantly segregated by gender, neglecting the vast possibilities of STEM careers.
The foundation for mathematics and interest towards STEM is built during the early years of education. According to Cannady et al. Recently, research has focused on identifying the biological and sociocultural factors for the divergence in gender abilities, interests, and career choices.
Wang and Degol concluded that for reducing the gender gap in STEM, attention should be given to address the contributory cognitive, motivational, and sociocultural factors, primarily by maximizing the number of career options that women perceive as attainable and compatible with their abilities, preferences, and goals.
Otherwise, large numbers of mathematically talented females will continue to slip through the cracks when their choices are restricted by cultural barriers, gender stereotypes, or misinformation. In Finland, students make subject choices that can decisively affect their futures at the age of 16 or even earlier. Therefore, it would be essential to seek new, more effective means and ways to deliver information during their early years about relatively new careers such as ICT Information and communication technologies.
As social cognitive career theory Lent et al. Further, Seyranian et al. It is important to discover if these types of new learning environments, out-of-school time science activities Dabney et al. We suggest further research to find out if such actions can provide effective ways to motivate youth towards STEM pathways and subjects and also to help them see the constantly evolving possibilities of future STEM careers.
The questionnaire data were collected mostly from minor aged 16—year-old students with consent of confidentiality and therefore cannot be shared. The register datasets were provided to the University of Oulu for research purposes under strict condition of not sharing them without permission from the CSC, the other Finnish Universities involved, as well as the Matriculation Examination Board.
For further information about the availability of the register data, please contact the corresponding author. Allen, C. Fighting for desired versions of a future self: How young women negotiated STEM-related identities in the discursive landscape of educational opportunity.
Article Google Scholar. Bandura, A. Social foundations of thought and action: A social cognitive theory. Some interesting comparisons, however, can still be made.
The United Kingdom, after recognising participation in advanced maths was in serious decline, launched a national campaign to reverse the trend.
While there was some improvement after the campaign, almost three-quarters of students who achieved good marks in maths still chose not to study it after the age of But strong levels of achievement in maths earlier in the school years are essential to feed the pipeline.
Perhaps even more concerning is that the ranking-gap between Australia and top performing countries is widening. But a striking difference in attitude emerges from the data — Australian students are significantly less satisfied and engaged with maths than their international peers. Estonia , the highest ranked European country for maths in PISA in , has small classes and almost no high-stakes tests for school children, leaving more time for instruction.
Australia needs to concentrate on high-quality student instruction not testing, and improving attitudes to, and engagement in, mathematics. Employers often look overseas for suitable applicants, with some figures showing more vacancies are filled by overseas engineering graduates than locals.
Some studies have shown students taking higher maths at school go on to have higher earnings in adulthood. The relationship between studying higher-level maths and earning more may be one of causation that maths skills lead to higher earners , correlation that people with good maths skills are more likely to have other skills that lead to higher earnings , or a bit of both. But, either way, it exists. According to US analysis that compared university majors with median starting pay, median mid-career pay at least ten years in , growth in salary and wealth of job opportunities, maths and engineering majors reigned supreme.
And a more recent analysis by the US data researcher PayScale found graduates in maths, science and engineering had the highest mid-career salary.
One of the biggest gender gaps in education is seen in maths. Girls in most countries complete less, or lower level, maths than boys.
Hide Caption. West Virginia teachers return to classroom. It's back to school in West Virginia. Teachers across the Appalachian mountain state are reopening classrooms Wednesday, jubilant after their governor signed a 5 percent pay raise that ended their nine-day walkout.
March 7. Share your feedback to help improve our site!
0コメント