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Behind the “Success Story”: Exploring the Experiences of a Woman Mathematics Major

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Abstract

In Canada, women are a minority in university mathematics programmes, and this situation has not improved in the past several years. To examine this situation, research was conducted to investigate the experiences of women who might be considered “success stories” in mathematics—those who persevered beyond their initial years of university study—to understand the supports and challenges that they faced. Elise, a master’s student in mathematics, participated in this study. Although by external standards Elise was a very successful student and perhaps even a “model” of a successful woman in this field, her interview provided evidence that she was very anxious and nervous, and felt extreme pressure to succeed and be “perfect”. By examining Elise’s experiences, a better understanding of the tension between Elise’s outward success and internal anxieties can be garnered. Additionally, a re-examination of traditional definitions of women’s success in fields dominated by men is provided. We also discuss considerations that should be taken into account when interacting with high-achieving students.

Résumé

Au Canada, les femmes sont en minorité dans les programmes de mathématiques à l’université, et la situation ne s’est guère améliorée dans les dernières années. Pour analyser cette situation, une recherche a été menée afin d’examiner l’expérience de femmes qu’on peut considérer comme des exemples de réussite en mathématiques – celles qui ont persévéré au-delà des premières années d’études universitaires – dans le but de mieux comprendre le soutien qu’elles ont reçu et les défis qu’elles ont relevés. Elise, étudiante à la maîtrise en mathématiques, a participé à cette étude. Même si, selon les critères standards, Elise était une excellente étudiante, voire un modèle de femme ayant réussi dans cette discipline, l’entrevue réalisée avec elle indique qu’elle était très anxieuse et nerveuse, et qu’elle sentait une forte pression l’obligeant à réussir et à être « parfaite ». En analysant l’expérience d’Elise, nous sommes en mesure de mieux comprendre la tension qui existe entre les signes extérieurs de la réussite et l’anxiété profonde. En outre, nous proposons une remise en question des définitions traditionnelles lorsqu’il s’agit de la réussite des femmes dans des disciplines dominées par les hommes. Nous nous penchons également sur certains facteurs dont il faudrait tenir compte lorsqu’on interagit avec des étudiants très performants.

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Notes

  1. In the Statistics Canada database, mathematics, computer science, and information science are aggregated.

  2. Whilst we view gender as a spectrum, some of the authors and sources that we cite, particularly regarding statistics and large-scale datasets, treat gender as a binary, so we report their findings as such.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Education, Monash University, Room 262B, 19 Ancora Imparo Way, Monash University, Clayton, VIC, 3800, Australia

    Jennifer Hall

  2. Faculty of Education, University of Ottawa, 145 Jean Jacques Lussier, Ottawa, ON, K1N 6N5, Canada

    Christine Suurtamm

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Hall, J., Suurtamm, C. Behind the “Success Story”: Exploring the Experiences of a Woman Mathematics Major. Can. J. Sci. Math. Techn. Educ. 18, 342–354 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s42330-018-0032-1

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