Final answer:
Studies and data, including those by biologist Anne Fausto-Sterling, show that while boys may initially outperform girls in spatial and complex math tasks, these differences are minimal and largely influenced by societal and cultural factors, such as education and sports participation, rather than inherent abilities.
Step-by-step explanation:
Research indicates that boys may initially outperform girls in tests of spatial ability and complex math problems, though with regards to math computation and overall math performance, both boys and girls show similar capabilities. The perception that boys naturally excel in these areas may be influenced by cultural factors, such as parenting styles and cultural expectations, which encourage certain types of play and learning experiences. Anne Fausto-Sterling's extensive research in 'Myths of Gender' highlights that differences in cognitive abilities between genders are minimal and often not statistically significant. Moreover, when girls are given the same opportunities as boys, such as those in sports or hard sciences, they tend to improve their skill levels to match those of boys, suggesting that differences in skill levels can be attributed to exposure and practice rather than inherent ability.
Various studies have shown the influence of social conditioning on students, such as teachers giving more praise to male students and offering them more chances to expand their ideas, which could account for some observed performance differences in the classroom. Additionally, involvement in sports has been linked to opportunities in career fields for girls that may have been previously inaccessible. This emphasizes the impact of societal constructs on performance in spatial ability and problem solving rather than innate gender differences.