The influence of sex, age and attendance on attainment in mathematics in form I Junior Lyceum

Abstract

The aim of this study is to investigate the influence of: (i) attendance on attainment; (ii) age on attendance and attainment; (iii) sex on attendance and attainment. The sample consisted of 683 pupils, (370 girls, 313 boys) aged between 11 years 7 months and 12 years 6 months, attending Form. I Junior Lyceum during the scholastic year 19 9 2 - 19 9 3 . The analysis' was based on the pupils' annual examination results in mathematics and the number of days at tended during November and March of the same scholastic year. Results indicate that girls perform. significantly better than boys in mathematics; age and sex have no influence on attendance; the older pupils obtain higher marks than the younger ones, but this relationship is not significant; in mathematics the pupils with a higher attendance rate outperform. the ones with a lower attendance rate, but this is significant for the whole sample and for the girls, but not for the boys.