Comment Re:What? (Score 1) 701
It also says boys do 7% better in the maths portion of the SATs, but writes it off as a statistical illusion due to more girls doing the test (they don't know how averages work?).
I bet it wouldn't be a statistical illusion if the girls where the ones getting 7% better.
I think you misunderstood the author's logic. More college-interested girls take the test than boys. The author suggests that these extra girls are not drawn uniformly across all ability levels. These "extra" girls may be disproportionately drawn from lower ability levels, pulling down girls averages.
It's easy to imagine cultural mechanisms that could lead to this phenomena. For example, perhaps lower-ability girls are more often encouraged to apply for college than boys.
