Trajectories of Educational Aspirations Through High School and Beyond - A Gendered Phenomenon?

Oct 15, 2026

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Growth curve modeling examines how adolescents’ educational aspirations evolve from early high school through three years after graduation, focusing on gender and other student characteristics. The study finds gender differences in aspiration level, growth rate, and acceleration: boys start lower, rise faster to a peak above girls, then decline more sharply so aspirations converge after high school. Grade 9 achievement and perceptions of educational barriers also shape trajectories, informing strategies to promote sustained aspirations.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages20

Reading Time50 min

AccessFree to download

Abstract

Keywords

Trajectories of Educational Aspirations Through High School and Beyond: A Gendered Phenomenon? Jennifer D. Shapka University of British Columbia Jose F. Domene University of New Brunswick Daniel P. Keating University of Michigan Abstract Growth curve modeling was utilized to examine change in the educational aspirations of adolescents from early high school through to three years beyond high school, as a function of gender and other adolescent characteristics. Significant gender effects were found for level of education aspired to, rate of growth, and degree of acceleration: boys’ aspirations were lower in early high school, accelerated at a faster pace to peak above girls’ aspirations by the end of highschool, and dropped more steeply so that, by the post-high school period, educational aspirations were equivalent across genders. Gender also interacted with Grade 9 achievement in determining educational trajectories. Finally, the perception that one faces barriers in educational attainment was found to significantly influence rate of growth and acceleration, indicating that change in aspirations over time differs between people who see barriers to their education and people who do not, independently of gender. Implications of these results for promoting students’ educational aspirations are discussed. Keywords: Gender, high school, educational aspirations CANADIAN JOURNAL OF EDUCATION 35, 1 (2012): 239-258 ©2011 Canadian Society for the Study of Education/ Société canadienne pour l’étude de l’éducation Résumé La modélisation des courbes de croissance a été utilisée pour examiner les changements dans les ambitions scolaires des adolescents à l'école secondaire et jusqu'à trois ans au-delà de l'école secondaire, en fonction du sexe et d'autres caractéristiques des adolescents. D'importantes différences selon le sexe ont été observées concernant le niveau d'éducation auquel les adolescents aspiraient, le taux de croissance, et le degré d'accélération: la courbe représentant les ambitions des garçons était plus basse au début de l'école secondaire, augmentait ensuite à un rythme plus rapide jusqu'à atteindre un pic au-dessus de la courbe des filles pour la période de la fin de l'école secondaire, et chutait enfin plus fortement de telle sorte que les deux courbes seretrouvaient au même niveau dans la période post-secondaire. Le genre a également interagi avec la réussite en neuvième année en déterminant des trajectoires éducatives. Enfin, la perception d'être confronté à des barrières entravant la réussite scolaire s'est révélée être un facteur qui influence de manière significative le taux de croissance et d'accélération, ce qui indique que le changement dans les ambitions scolaires au fil du temps diffère entre ceux qui perçoivent des obstacles au cours de leur scolarité et ceux qui n'en perçoivent pas, indépendamment de leursexe. Les implications de ces résultats pour promouvoir les ambitions scolaires des élèves sont discutées. Mots-clés: Genre, école secondaire, aspirations scolaires Trajectories of Educational Aspirations Through High School and Beyond: A Gendered Phenomenon? As one aspect of educational engagement (Suh & Suh, 2006), educational aspirations have been found to be one of the most significant predictors of actual educational and career educational attainment for young people (Garg, Melanson, & Levin, 2007; Mau & Biksos, 2000) . More specifically, theory and empirical evidence converge to indicate that level of educational aspiration is predictive of persistence in schooling (e.g., Bui, 2007; Lent, Brown, & Hackett, 1994; Tinto, 1993); academic motivation (e.g., Domene, Socholotiuk, & Woitowicz, 2011); subsequent educational attainment (e.g., Anders, Adamuti-Trache, Yoon, Pidgeon, & Thomsen, 2007; Wigfield & Eccles, 2000); and eventual occupational outcomes (e.g., Eccles, 2009; Klerman & Karoly, 1995; Schoon & Parsons, 2002) . Extant work has also shown that educational aspiratio

FAQs

How does the study model changes in educational aspirations over time?

It uses growth curve modeling to examine how adolescents’ aspirations change from early high school through three years beyond high school as a function of gender and other characteristics.

What gender pattern does the study find in aspiration levels?

Boys’ aspirations are lower early in high school, accelerate faster to peak above girls by late high school, and drop more steeply afterward so aspirations become equivalent across genders post-high school.

Which additional factors influence educational trajectories besides gender?

The study shows Grade 9 achievement interacts with gender in predicting trajectories, and perceptions of barriers to educational attainment significantly affect growth rate and acceleration independent of gender.

Oct 15, 2026

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