Indicator 15: Gender Differences in Students' Attitudes Toward Reading

G-20 Countries Included: Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Indonesia, Italy, Russian Federation, Saudi Arabia, United Kingdom (England and Northern Ireland), United States

In all G-20 countries, higher percentages of fourth-grade females than males liked reading, with differences ranging from 8 percentage points in France to 25 percentage points in Saudi Arabia.

This indicator examines the differences between fourth-grade male and female students' attitudes toward reading across the participating G-20 countries. It is based on three indices formed using data from PIRLS 2011: the Like to Read index, the Motivated to Read index, and the Confident in Reading index. Each index places students into one of three categories based on whether they agreed a lot, agreed a little, disagreed a little, or disagreed a lot with the statements described in "Definitions and Methodology" below. For instance, the Like to Read index categorizes students into those who like reading, somewhat like reading, and do not liking reading. This indicator presents data only for students in the highest category (e.g., like reading) in each index.

In all G-20 countries, higher percentages of fourth-grade females than males liked reading, with differences ranging from 8 percentage points in France to 25 percentage points in Saudi Arabia (figure 15-1). In the United States, the difference between females and males was 13 percentage points. Thirty-three percent of fourth-grade females in the United States liked reading, which was lower than in Canada, Germany, Indonesia, and Saudi Arabia. Twenty percent of U.S. fourth-grade males liked reading, which was lower than in Australia, Canada, France, Germany, and Indonesia, but higher than in Italy and Saudi Arabia.

In all G-20 countries except Indonesia, there were differences in the percentages of females and males who were motivated to read. In the 10 remaining countries, a higher percentage of females than males were motivated to read, although the differences (ranging from 4 percentage points in France to 16 percentage points in Saudi Arabia) were generally smaller than for those who liked reading (figure 15-2). In the United States, the difference between females and males was 7 percentage points. Seventy-four percent of fourth-grade females in the United States were motivated to read, which was lower than in Indonesia, the Russian Federation, and Saudi Arabia, but higher than in France, Germany, Italy, and the United Kingdom (England and Northern Ireland). Among males, 67 percent of U.S. fourth-graders were motivated to read, which, as for females, was lower than in Indonesia, the Russian Federation, and Saudi Arabia. However, the U.S. percentage for males was higher than the percentages in Italy and the United Kingdom (England and Northern Ireland).

In 8 of the 11 participating G-20 countries, higher percentages of fourth-grade females than males expressed confidence in reading, with differences ranging from 5 percentage points in Canada to 20 percentage points in Saudi Arabia (figure 15-3). The difference between the percentages of U.S. females and males who expressed confidence in reading was 6 percentage points. The percentages of both females and males in the United States who had confidence in reading were among the highest in the participating G-20 countries. Forty-three percent of females in the United States had confidence in reading, lower only than in Germany and Saudi Arabia and higher than in Australia, France, Indonesia, Italy, the Russian Federation, and the United Kingdom (England). Thirty-seven percent of males in the United States had confidence in reading, lower only than in Germany and higher than in France, Indonesia, Italy, the Russian Federation, Saudi Arabia, and the United Kingdom (Northern Ireland).

---

Definitions and Methodologie

This indicator is based on three indices formed using data from the PIRLS 2011 student questionnaire. The questionnaire obtained information about students' home and school lives, including basic demographic information as well as information about students' home environments, school climate for learning, and self-perception and attitudes toward reading.

Students were assessed on whether they liked reading based on the extent of their agreement with the following statements—I read only if I have to; I like talking about what I read with other people; I would be happy if someone gave me a book as a present; I think reading is boring; I would like to have more time for reading; and I enjoy reading—as well as on how often they reported reading for fun and reading things they chose themselves outside of school. To determine whether students were motivated to read, students were asked to rate their agreement with the following statements: I like to read things that make me think; it is important to be a good reader; my parents like it when I read; I learn a lot from reading; I need to read well for my future; and I like it when a book helps me imagine other worlds. To determine students' confidence in reading, students were asked to rate their agreement with the following statements: I usually do well in reading; reading is easy for me; reading is harder for me than for many of my classmates; if a book is interesting, I don't care how hard it is to read; I have trouble reading stories with difficult words; my teacher tells me I am a good reader; and reading is harder for me than any other subject.

In PIRLS 2011 in the fourth grade, countries were required to sample students in the grade that corresponded to the end of 4 years of formal schooling, providing that the mean age at the time of testing was at least 9.5 years. As defined by PIRLS, the first year of formal schooling begins with the first year of primary school (ISCED97 level 1), which should mark the beginning of formal instruction in reading, writing, and mathematics. (Note that kindergarten is not counted.) For most countries, the target grade was fourth grade or its national equivalent.

Top