While research has documented that children can compensate for overt cues to teaching inefficacy through exploration of novel solutions, an important question is whether children use exploration to detect inefficacy. Further, to move beyond ineffective teaching, learners must prioritize their own ideas. Thus, girls could be disadvantaged due to a greater emphasis on people-pleasing in their socialization. We tested 7- to 10-year-olds using a novel, video-game paradigm. Children were shown ineffective instruction but could only discover its inefficacy by independently attempting the solution. Children generally attempted the taught solution successfully and rationally traded-off between instruction and exploration. However, gender differences emerged in exploration, solving, and learning even after controlling for video game experience and teacher gender. These results have important implications, as girls may have a greater need to move beyond ineffective teaching when exposed to sexist content or beliefs.