Fondazione GRINS
Growing Resilient,
Inclusive and Sustainable
Galleria Ugo Bassi 1, 40121, Bologna, IT
C.F/P.IVA 91451720378
Finanziato dal Piano Nazionale di Ripresa e Resilienza (PNRR), Missione 4 (Infrastruttura e ricerca), Componente 2 (Dalla Ricerca all’Impresa), Investimento 1.3 (Partnership Estese), Tematica 9 (Sostenibilità economica e finanziaria di sistemi e territori).
Open Access
GRINS THEMATIC AREAS
RESOURCES
This paper investigates inequalities in cognitive and socio-emotional skills among Italian primary school children, with a focus on gender and migration background. Using original data from over 2,500 pupils in grades 3–5 across three regions, we measure mathematics performance, academic self-concept, growth mindset, prosocial behavior, socio-emotional skills, and gender norms.
We document systematic gender gaps: girls outperform boys in socio-emotional and non-cognitive domains, while boys achieve higher scores in mathematics and math self-concept. Children with a migratory background perform worse in both cognitive and most non-cognitive outcomes.
We further examine the role of one’s own and teachers’ gender-related attitudes and instructional practices. Children’s stronger adherence to gender stereotypes is associated with worse non-cognitive skills, notably socio-emotional skills, growth mindset, academic self-concept, and mathematics performance, with more pronounced associations for boys.
At the teachers’ level, gender stereotypes are associated with lower self-efficacy and academic self-concept, particularly among girls, whereas more inclusive teaching practices are linked to higher mathematics achievement and improved socio-emotional outcomes. These associations are not explained by observable teacher characteristics.
Overall, the findings highlight the importance of gender norms and teacher beliefs in shaping early educational inequalities and inform policies aimed at reducing skill gaps in primary education.
KEYWORDS
AKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Corresponding author: Daniela Piazzalunga. e-mail: daniela.piazzalunga@unitn.it. Funding: This paper is part of the GENESIS project and is funded by the European Union – Next Genera- tion EU under the GRINS – Growing Resilient, Inclusive and Sustainable Project (GRINSPE00000018 – CUP E63C22002140007), through the ‘Bando a Cascata’ “Gender Attitudes and Children’s Socio-Emotional Skills (GENESIS)”. The views and opinions expressed are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union, and the European Union cannot be held responsible for them. Acknowledgements: GENESIS is conducted in coordination with the project “Tackling Inequalities in Educational Outcomes: Experimental Evidence from Italian Primary Schools” (https://cubeprogramme.unito.it/en/ home-en/). Ethical approval was obtained from the Universities of Padova, Turin, and Trento. We thank all re- searchers involved, the field managers, enumerators, and the participating school principals, teachers, and pupils. We also thank participants of the “Socio-Emotional and Education” workshop (Trento, September 2025) and the GRINS Spoke 3 workshop (Naples, January 2026) for valuable comments. In drafting this document, generative artificial intelligence tools were used to enhance writing quality. All statements have been verified and processed by the authors, who assume full responsibility for the content of the document.
CITE THIS WORK