Boys, Girls and Grades: How the Schools Are Measured

While this study adopts the general design of The Fraser Institute's A Secondary Schools Report Card for British Columbia and The 1999 Report Card on British Columbia's Secondary Schools, our task here is to produce a rating on a single parameter--we call it "academic gender balance"--whereas in the report card, we produced an overall academic rating. Relevant data from British Columbia's Ministry of Education are used to produce a number of indicators of school performance that are then combined into an overall school rating. The indicators are defined as follows.

This indicator calculates the difference, in percentage points, between the provincial examination results achieved by male and female students in English 12 and Mathematics 12. 17 It measures the extent to which the school enables students of both genders to master the curriculum and is derived by subtracting the average examination mark (in percent) for males from the corresponding mark for females.

For example, at Pacific Academy in Surrey, the average examination mark for English 12 achieved by female students in 1992/1993 was 73.9 percent. The corresponding mark for male students was 72.5 percent. The value reported for Pacific Academy on this indicator is thus 73.9 percent minus 72.5 percent, or positive 1.4 percent.

Even a seemingly small difference such as this is important because it represents a difference of one letter grade. The girls in the example obtained, on average, a B; the boys, a C+. Differences in letter grades are especially significant in circumstances such as certain post-secondary applications for admission and scholarships where a student's Grade Point Average (based on the letter grade) is considered.

This indicator determines the difference in percentage points between the failure rates of girls and boys writing provincial examinations in English 12 and Mathematics 12 ( failure rate = percentage of examinations written that were assessed a failing grade). Using these indicators, we can determine whether the school's teachers have helped all students to achieve at least a pass-level standard of subject mastery. The indicators are derived by subtracting the failure rate (in percent) for boys from the corresponding failure rate for girls.

For example, at Duchess Park Secondary, the failure rate for girls taking Mathematics 12 in 1997/1998 was 31.5 percent. The corresponding rate for male students was 22.6 percent. The value reported for Duchess Park Secondary on this indicator is, therefore, 31.5 percent minus 22.6 percent or positive 8.9 percent.

To put the result another way, for the year 1997/1998, of a group of 100 female students at Duchess Park, about 32 would fail the Mathematics-12 examination. Of a group of 100 male students, only about 23 would fail the same examination.

This indicator compares each gender's average provincial examination mark with its average school mark (derived from school-based assessments) for English 12 and Mathematics 12. We expect school marks to provide information about a student's mastery of the subject. This indicator shows whether this objective is successfully met for both genders. It is derived by first subtracting the average examination mark for female students from their average school mark in the same subject; then by making the same calculation for male students. Finally, the difference between the average school mark and the average examination mark of the boys is subtracted from the difference between the average school mark and the average examination mark of the girls.

For example, during 1994/1995, the female students at Killarney Secondary in Vancouver averaged 68.38 percent (C+) on school marks for English 12 and 63.20 percent (C) on their examination marks--a difference of 5.18 percent and one letter grade. On the other hand, the male students received an average school mark of 64.12 percent (C) and 60.07 percent (C) on the examination--a difference of 4.05 percent and no difference in average letter grade. Comparing the two, we see that girls at Killarney received higher school marks relative to their examination scores--by 1.1 percent--than did boys. This value appears in Killarney's results table.

This indicator compares by-gender graduation rates. It will reveal any differences in the success that counselling staff may have in encouraging boys and girls to complete their studies on time. The particular graduation statistic used is the same as that described on page 10 above.

For example, at Courtenay's Highland Secondary in 1995/1996, 90.9 percent of the female potential graduates graduated on schedule, while only 80.2 percent of their male counterparts were similarly successful. The difference 10.7 percent is shown in Highland's results table.

While each of the indicators reflects a single aspect of the academic gender balance prevailing at the school, the combined indicators produce a more complete picture. We have developed an overall rating using the same technique as that employed in A Secondary Schools Report Card for British Columbia and The 1999 Report Card on British Columbia's Secondary Schools.

This overall rating answers the question, "All things considered, how is the school doing in terms of academic gender balance?" A full explanation of the conversion of the results to the overall rating is provided in the section, Details of the Academic Gender Balance Rating, on page 24.

At the bottom of this page, there is an example (table for Kelowna Secondary School) of the tables to be found in this report. The first line of the table lists the school's name, its affiliation--public or independent school--and its Grade-12 enrollment as of September 30 of the school year 1997/1998. Note that the smaller the enrollment, the less reliable the results.

The school's results for the six years are detailed in the body of the table. All numbers except the overall rating at the bottom are percentage points. (In all cases, the theoretically perfect--and seldom obtained--value is zero.) The higher the number, the greater is the imbalance between the results for boys and girls. Where the imbalance favours female students, the result is presented using white numbers on a black background; where the imbalance favours male students, the result is presented using black numbers on a white background. Where gender balance is achieved a value of 0.0 appears against a grey background. In those cases where data is not available, "NA" appears on the same gray background. The overall rating at the bottom of the chart is the school's academic gender balance rating for the year; the highest possible value is 10.

The table offers a wealth of detail. In the example, the result that jumps out of the table is that 31 results favour the school's female students and just 9 favour male students. Reflecting the general result, girls have benefited from higher school marks relative to examination marks in both courses, in all years. On the plus side, these differences are relatively small. The graduation rate, on the other hand, consistently and quite strongly favours the girls. As is the case in a great many schools, there is substantial variation in the results across the years and across indicators. Study of the individual indicators will suggest the areas that are most in need of improvement.

Finally, the overall ratings at the bottom of the table give us an overview of the school's academic gender balance over time. Kelowna scored very well in 1997/1998 compared to other schools ( seventh out of 228 schools) and has maintained a high overall rating over the six-year period.

In the interests of fairness and reliability, not all of the province's secondary schools could be included in the survey. Excluded are schools at which the Grade-12 enrollment is fewer than 50 students; centres for adult education and continuing education; schools that cater solely or largely to non-resident foreign students; certain alternative schools not offering a full program of courses; and, schools not offering a co-educational program. All other secondary schools are included.

17. English 12 and Mathematics 12 are used in the indicators because, since they are the two most frequently written provincial examinations (accounting for 44 percent of all examinations written during the study period), virtually all schools have reportable results for both genders.

Boys, Girls and Grades: How the Schools Are Measured

Reading the Tables