ISSN: 2320-5407 Int. J. Adv. Res. 5(10), 933-937 933 Journal Homepage: - www.journalijar.com Article DOI: 10.21474/IJAR01/5607 DOI URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.21474/IJAR01/5607 RESEARCH ARTICLE CLOSING GENDER GAPS IN ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT IN AGRICULTURE AMONG SECONDARY SCHOOL STUDENTS USING CO-OPERATIVE LEARNING APPROACH. Mary Mwihaki Waiganjo. …………………………………………………………………………………………………….... Manuscript Info Abstract ……………………. ……………………………………………………………… Manuscript History Received: 12 August 2017 Final Accepted: 14 September 2017 Published: October 2017 Key words:- Co-operative Learning Approach, male students, female students, Gender, Academic Achievement, Agriculture. In the Sub-Saharan Africa, gender differences in academic achievement have been of concern. The male students tend to score better grades in most of the subjects offered including agriculture. The purpose of this study was to see whether a change in the teaching approach used to teach agriculture can narrow the academic achievement gap between secondary school male and female students. This study aimed at investigating whether there are gender differences in academic achievement among secondary school agriculture students when taught through Co-operative Learning Approach (CLA). A non-equivalent control group design under quasi-experimental research was used. Four schools were randomly selected from the sub-county’s co-education schools in Kenya. A Form one class was selected from each school for the study. A total of 154 students were involved. Random assignment was done to place two of the selected schools in the experimental group and two schools in the control group. The instrument used was the Agriculture Achievement Test (AAT) which was pilot-tested and validated before use. The instrument had a reliability coefficient of 0.762. All the selected four classes were taught the topic ‘Factors Influencing Agriculture’ for four weeks. The teachers who used CLA went through an induction workshop prior to the treatment. The instrument (AAT) was then administered to all. After treatment, the data collected were analyzed using t-test of independent samples. The null hypothesis was tested at 0.05 level of significance. The findings of this study indicate that there is no significant gender difference in academic achievement among agriculture students when cooperative learning approach is used. Copy Right, IJAR, 2017,. All rights reserved. …………………………………………………………………………………………………….... Introduction:- Gender differences in academic achievement have been an area of study for several decades now. In their report OECD (2009) asserts that one reason for studying gender differences is to improve our understanding of how students learn. Several studies have indicated that in the industrialized countries, female students perform better academically than males (Fortin, Oreopoulos & Phipps, 2013; Sparks-Wallace, 2007). However studies done by Sutherland-Addy, (2008) reveals that in Sub-Saharan Africa, the opposite is true where male students perform better academically than female students . According to Endepohls-Ulpe (2012) there are gender stereotypes that can be used to explain why male and female students attain different grades. Males are said to be independent, assertive and initiating while females are caring, emotionally expressive and responsive to others. Weaver-Hightower as cited in Corresponding Author:- Mary Mwihaki Waiganjo.