Gender differences in grades are decreasing – as girls' results are falling

"Equalizing the grades of girls and boys is in line with the government's goal of equal education, but it is not only positive because girls perform worse. We see that stress due to expectations and performance requirements hits girls harder. Girls also enjoy school less than boys and experience greater insecurity," says Hannah Alvå, investigator at the Swedish Agency for Gender Equality.

Important to invest in reading skills early

The merit value of girls in grade 9 has decreased by seven points from the 2019/20 school year to the 2024/25 school year, from approximately 236 to 229. During the same time, the merit value of boys has increased by approximately two points, to 213 for the 2024/25 school year. The National Agency for Education has concluded that no single factor can explain the development, but that the study environment and mental health may have contributed. The Swedish Gender Equality Agency has analyzed which gender equality policy measures may be needed and concludes that early investments in reading skills are important for improving boys' academic results.

"The Government has worked to improve reading comprehension, language development and access to special support. Such general measures can also benefit gender equality. However, we believe that gender equality analyses are needed to make the efforts more accurate. For example, there is reason to look further at how schools work with special needs, since more girls than boys feel that they do not receive the support they need and 62 percent of students with action programs are boys, says Hannah Alvå.