Does Virtual Education Close the Gender Gap in the Sciences, Mathematics and English?: Using Online Courses to Eliminate the Effects of Teachers' Gender Bias

An ever increasing number of school districts realize the potential for online classes to allow students equal access to a high quality education. This study used quantitative methods to contribute to the body of literature pertaining to K-12 online learning and also the gender gap in mathematics, science, and English/language arts education. Research for this study focused on the extent to which the gender gap in mathematics, science, and English/language arts performance is the result of differences in the level of teacher-student interaction through analyzing students' final course grades from a school district's 6th-12th grade traditional courses and online courses where there is no teacher-student interaction. Student achievement was further analyzed by controlling for prior achievement, socio-economic status (S.E.S.) and ethnicity. This study intends to contribute to the body of research on the gender gap and the benefits of online education at the K-12 level.