First, they focused on the total effect of gender on average math achievement.

• Dependent variable: standardized test scores
• Independent variable: gender
• Control variable: maternal & paternal education, socio-economic status of the family, geographical area and number of siblings

Second, if school characteristics influence learning

• Exposed to similar environment:
• Student body composition, learning targets, educational practices, gender stereotypes

Third, they shifted focus from the expected values to the entire test score distribution.

• Analyze gender differences at different points of the ability distribution. With these, an assessment of the existence of female disadvantages in math throughout the distribution can be made. It can also assess if the gap is stronger among low performing or top performing children.