Interrelationship of Age and Sex in Achievement in an Accelerated Eighth Grade Algebra Course.

Eighty-one bright eighth-grade students were selected for an accelerated program in algebra. Students were classified by sex and by chronological age; the three age cohorts were 143-156 months, 157-159 months, and 160-165 months old. Success in the course, as measured by course grade, was considered in relation to age and sex; IQ score was used as a covariate. A 3x2 analysis of covariance was performed; the main effect for age and the interaction of age and sex were found to be significant at the .05 level. The Newman-Keuls multiple comparison test revealed significant differences in achievement of the youngest group of boys and the other two male cohorts. The oldest group of boys achieved significantly more than the youngest groups of either sex. (SD)