undergraduates' attitudes and the study of mathematics at the ...

INTRODUCTION
Studies on gender disparities have been done in both developed and developing countries. In
these countries women in institutions of higher learning tend to concetrate in certain fields of
study such as humanities, home economics and arts, though more women have now enrolled in
other fields like business and public administration. The enrolment in the fields such as maths
and science related fields is however still limited. Low enrollment in maths and science fields
can be said to result from a number of factors affecting women especially at different levels of
schooling. For example traditional and cultural expectations from different societies in the
developing world in particular, seem to have an influence on subject choice and selection
especially at secondary school level.
In developed countries,where many studies on gender differences in maths have been done, some
different views have emerged whether the differences were declining in those countries or not.
Also some studies in both developed and developing countries have indicated that gender
differences in maths performance existed in upper grades and that they were not significant in
lower grades. The premise put forward is that gender differences could increase as students go to
higher levels of schooling. This article reviews such a trend with data involving performance,
attitudes, enrolment and dropout in the subject
Gender studies in Sub-Saharan Africa
Gender disparities in education in developing countries can be said to be characterised by some
influences from cultural and traditional practices. In Sub-Saharan Africa, education has been
influenced by for example indigenous cultures, religion and education provided in the western
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