This study analyzed data from the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) taken by high school seniors between 1975 and 1986. Its purpose was to study trends in the numbers, test scores, and other characteristics of examinees planning to major in mathematics, science, and engineering, and to compare these data with comparable data from examinees planning…

This document reports on a study which explored the major field preferences of top-scoring Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) examinees over the past decade, focusing especially on the numbers choosing to major in mathematics, science, and engineering. The major findings included: (1) the proportion of top-scoring examinees planning to major in…

Recent attention has focused on the decreasing levels of scholastic achievement of youth in the United States, particularly in areas of mathematics and science. In particular, concern has been expressed about the involvement and achievement of girls in traditionally sex stereotyped curricula, such as mathematics and science. This paper reports on…

Investigates the dimensions underlying performance on the diagrams, tables, and maps subset of the Swedish Scholastic Aptitude Test. Analyzes data from two test versions by using a structural-equation modeling technique on 14,463 and 19,636 examinees respectively. Concludes that gender difference in performance is due, to a great extent, to the…

This study analyzed data from the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) taken between 1977 and 1988 to study trends in the numbers, test scores, and other characteristics of high school seniors planning to major in math, science, or engineering, and to compare these data with comparable data from examinees planning to major in other fields. Results…

Examined sex differences in science/mathematics achievement and preparation of students (N=269 males; N=239 females), following their performance and participation during high school and college. Indicates that women took fewer science/mathematics courses than men but performed at a higher level in both high school and college. Other results are…

This report summarizes information about student achievement, student opportunity to learn in science and mathematics, and student variables relating to that achievement for elementary and secondary students in the state of Illinois. Five tests were used for the basis of this report: The Illinois Inventory of Educational Progress, the American…

The Project on Equal Education Rights (PEER) measures progress in educational equality and documents the advancement of women and girls in education. State-by-state surveys of the status of females in education are used to measure this progress. The 1986 PEER report attempted to measure states' commitment to excellence and equity in education.…

The reading comprehension (RC) and sentence completion (SC) items from four forms of the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) verbal sections were examined for differential item functioning (DIF) between male and female examinees. Forms 1, 2, 3, and 4 of the SAT-verbal were administered in January 1983, January 1984, October 1984, and June 1986,…

Using data on approximately 2,000 students drawn from three talent searches conducted by the Study of Mathematically Precocious Youth, this study investigated the relationship of possible sex differences in science achievement to sex differences in mathematical reasoning ability. (BS)

Analysis of the relative contribution of age, gender, and verbal and mathematical reasoning abilities (measured by subtests of the Scholastic Aptitude Test) as predictors of success in accelerated secondary science courses found that a composite of verbal and mathematical reasoning ability was the most powerful predictor and verbal reasoning…

A study involving 716 male and 1,113 female first-year students admitted to the University of Delaware in the fall of 1985 was conducted to investigate the differential performance of men and women on the mathematics section of the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT). Data collected included SAT math scores; gender; and number of years of high school…

Information from the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) scores of high school seniors and their intended majors specified on the Student Descriptive Questionnaire (SDQ) suggests that there are growing numbers of students earning high math scores but relatively few plan to major in mathematics or science. (Author/MLW)

The predictive validity of the mathematics subtest of the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT-M) was investigated for 1,996 mathematically gifted (top 1 percent) seventh and eighth graders through academic achievements assessed over 10 years. The SAT-M appears to have predictive validity for differentiating highly able seventh and eighth graders. (SLD)

This study analyzed existing Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) and Graduate Record Examination (GRE) scores and selected student background variables to answer the following seven questions about students planning to major in the humanitiess and related social sciences: (1) Have SAT and GRE scores for these students declined? (2) In what ways have…