Female Students’ Participation in Mathematics Education at the University Level in Ghana

Abstract

For more than three decades now, a great body of research studies have been conducted to address the issue of gender disparities in mathematics education across the globe as a result of the minimal participation of females in mathematics education in higher levels of education. The primary purpose of this study, however, was to investigate female students’ participation in mathematics education at the university level. It considered 99 female students’ studying mathematics education from the University of Cape Coast and the University of Education, Winneba. The study used descriptive survey design to analyse both qualitative and quantitative data gathered from respondents. The study revealed among other things that the trend of enrolment of female students’ in mathematics education is on the decline. Also, the study revealed that enjoyment derived from studying mathematics education, career opportunities in mathematics education, desire to study mathematics education, interest in mathematics education, were some of the reasons why female students participate in mathematics education. The assertion that mathematics is a male domain subject was not a perception of female mathematics education students who participated in this study. Conclusions, implications and recommendations are further discussed in the work.