May 07 2008
more research on the gender gap
I’ve been searching for more information on the gender gap in literacy. It is pretty compelling. I’ve pasted in below some of what I found, plus Boy-friendly Teaching.
- From a recent study reported by the National Bureau of Economic Research, “Overall, the data suggest that, “a large fraction of boys’ dramatic underperformance in reading reflects the classroom dynamics associated with the fact that their reading teachers are overwhelmingly female.” According to the U.S. Department of Education’s 1999-2000 Schools and Staffing Survey, 91 percent of the nation’s sixth grade reading teachers, and 83 percent of eighth grade reading teachers are female. This depresses boys’ achievement. The fact that most middle school teachers of math, science, and history are also female may raise girls’ achievement. In short, the current gender imbalance in middle school staffing may be reducing the gender gap in science by helping girls but exacerbating the gender gap in reading by handicapping boys.”
- The Programme for International Assessment confirmed another trend in education, namely that there is a significant gender gap in reading and writing. Girls performed significantly better than boys on the reading and writing tests in all countries. Even in Finland, the top-ranked participant, there was a gender gap in the results in reading. Finnish girls scored 571 while boys scored only 520. In Canada the literacy gender gap was similar with girls’ scores being 551 and boys gaining 519. Girls in the USA scored only 518 but American boys lagged behind at 490. The same literacy gender gap was noted in all participating countries.
- Lower academic achievement can also have a negative impact on self-esteem. As the Canadians noted, ‘poor reading performance can have a profound effect on performance in other subjects’. Boys were marginally ahead of girls in mathematics but it’s language literacy that is essential to academic success.Those figures have numerous negative implications. A smaller percentage of boys than girls finish high school – another worldwide phenomenon. Even when the boys do graduate high school, a smaller percentage of them are now enrolling in college or University.One theory purports that schools simply don’t suit boys. Flinders University in South Australia interviewed 1,800 boys from 61 schools about boys’ declining rates of achievement and retention – another international phenomenon.
- A summary of their main findings is that “most boys don’t value school; school work is boring, repetitive and irrelevant. Also, school … expects adult behaviour but doesn’t deliver an adult environment and there are not enough good teachers.”
- Boy-friendly TeachingThe 2000 PISA results were a shock, but one that lead to positive changes in curriculum and ways of teaching. To ensure greater academic success for boys, our literacy teaching strategies must be more engaging for boys.We must:
- Allow greater choice in topics and the way assignments are completed, presented and assessed.
- Focus classroom activities on ways to harness boys’ energy.Ensure that lessons allow for movement rather than expect hours of sitting still and being sedate.
- Make learning more activity-centred rather than pen and paper
- Increase the range of literacy practices that are taughtEncourage team effort and collaborative learning. Boys can succeed when they contribute to part of a group project, rather than fail the entire task
- In selecting topics for reading and writing, see boys’ interest in real life tasks as a bonus not a deficit. Select more ‘how to’ books, non-fiction texts, comics, magazines based on their interests.
- Encourage students to create audio books, e-books, websites.
This teaching is pretty challenging… always something new to learn. Enjoy the sun! In fact, forget blogging… get out in it!
4 responses so far
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Interesting points…two comments: 1)This speaks to the need for professional development; it needs to be convenient, purposeful, and cost-free. 2) If the profession seeks to attract more males, the salary base must increase. My goddaughter graduated from UMass with a bachelor’s degree in business a year ago, and my Master’s salary won’t match her first year salary for a couple of years…
KLK
My comment has to do with another strategy that might be worth considering in the future. I happen to teach two low functioning math classes that are ALL boys. Their behavior and interactions are completely different from the boys in my heterogeneous classes. In one class we lost the last female in the group and the very next day things changed for the better. All of a sudden their need to attract attention from the girls disappeared and they were much more open about their questions/problems. It was as if they were not afraid of what the girls would say. I also have been able to integrate male gender biased topics into the lesson which has peaked these boys interest. We are now having some fantastic class conversations in a room where no one used to say a word.
I also have had the privilege of team teaching classrooms with two female teachers and others with one female and one male teacher. The research is right on, boys at this age have a hard time opening up to female teachers. As a team teacher we have even devised plans for the male teacher to spend more time with the boys and the female teacher (me) working more with the girls. It is amazing that we can both say the same thing to the same student but only one of us is received openly.
AmyB
The upper levels of my mixed classes are typically filled predominantly with boys . . . and there is definitely a noticeable attitude toward reading . … I have done what one of the teachers in the reading text we are using has done . . . written my own concise and precise text, with electronic versions on the computers . . . and I have included many graphic elements to illustrate the key points. Even these some students will avoid reading if possible. The benefit of this is, as the teacher in the book mentions . .. is that the author is there to answer questions, and another benefit is that I can see first hand which areas are unclear, and can update them regularly as software and hardware changes. I am hoping that my final project for this class will help me to combine a variety of techniques to encourage students to read some new sources that I have acquired this year . . . I have just begun implementing it and so far it has worked to a limited extent.
Amy, I can understand your point about the single sex classroom . . . I once had a class that by chance had only girls, and I loved teaching it . . . it was so nice to not have the additional distraction factor, and students were much more willing to open up and discuss without hesitation or fear of embarassment .. . .
As all of you know I am very strongly opinionated about integrating arts/movement into all classes. I have seen the power and improvement in it. Students really love being active whether they admit it or not. I have also had classes of all males which have been very successful, but I also feel they miss out on a lot when all they have is male opinions and outlooks on things. Girls really do add a whole new dynamic to the learning process. I’m not sure how I feel about all-male vs.mixed classes. I think it could do well either way. My final project is integrating movement and theater into reading and writing classes so I hope you will all gain a lot of ideas that you can use help encourage your students to read and write. I am so excited to share them with all of you.