GENDER DIFFERENCES OF LEARNING BIOMECHANICAL CONCEPTS

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The purpose of the current study was to compare the learning gains of biomechanical concepts between male and female students. A total of 49 students were recruited (26 female and 23 male) from an introductory biomechanics class. The Biomechanics Concept Inventory (BCI) was given during the first and final weeks of a 15-week semester to determine the students’ learning. The results indicated that there was no significant difference in pre-test (P = 0.11) and absolute gain (P = .05) between genders but significant differences were found in post-test and normalized learning gains. The female students learned better as evidenced by higher post-test score than male students in this group with similar baseline knowledge of biomechanics. The findings support recent studies which found that the gender gap in scientific achievement is narrowing.