In the French experiment, students were assigned to male or female instructors, and when they were asked to evaluate them, male students (although not, on average, the female students) rated male instructors higher overall. Could it have been that male teachers were actually better at their jobs? Sure. But the evidence suggested otherwise: On average, male students who took classes with male instructors did worse on the final than those with female instructors. And at this particular university, all students take the same final exam, which is graded anonymously. In short, even though male students perceived their male teachers to be more effective, in fact, students taught by females showed better mastery of the material and earned higher grades.