Gender equity in science classrooms: are teachers providing the necessary adjustments to meet the needs of female students?
Boys and girls often exhibit different approaches to learning and have different learning styles. This research project examines high school science teachers' knowledge of these differences and their willingness to incorporate a variety of strategies into their teaching to help ensure the educational success of their female students. A survey was developed and mailed to the state schools for the Deaf across the country and to public schools in the Rochester, New York area. The survey, directed towards science teachers in high schools, asked specific questions regarding the manner in which information was delivered in the classroom, while also asking how willing the teachers were to making changes in their instructional delivery in order to enhance the learning opportunities for their female students. Results of this survey indicated that many of the teachers were aware of strategies that help to facilitate female students participation and learning in the classroom. Most teachers, who were unaware of the strategies and their impact on facilitating participation and learning, could see that the strategies were valuable tools and would incorporate them in to their lessons in the future. These factors considered, one might be encouraged that with increased knowledge of learning style differences and incorporation of new instructional techniques, girls might find greater success and confidence in the science classroom which would carry over to educational and career choices in the science field.
Gender Equity: Still Knocking at the Classroom Door
(2000). Gender Equity: Still Knocking at the Classroom Door. Equity & Excellence in Education: Vol. 33, No. 1, pp. 80-83.
Gender Equity in Picture Books in Preschool Classrooms: An Exploratory Study.
A study examined the frequency with which males and females are represented in picture books available in preschool classrooms. Three areas were examined: pronoun usage and gender of characters; the frequency of gender-neutral pronouns and characters; and written text compared to teachers' wording when reading aloud. The study involved 11 head and assistant teachers and 4 student teachers in 4 preschool classrooms in a university-affiliated child care facility. Data were collected through an examination of 129 classroom books, observation of teachers during 52 story sessions, and questionnaires to determine how the teachers chose books for the classroom and how they changed the text when reading aloud. Study findings included the following: (1) in library corner books, male characters r-ppeared 1.8 times as frequently as females, with females comprising only 22% of the sample; (2) masculine pronouns were used as generics 3.4 times as frequently as female pronouns; (3) books read aloud by teachers demonstrated similar representations of male and female characters; and (4) questionnaire responses suggested that gender-biased language may not be a primary consideration for teachers in choosing books. The effects of books' use of predominantly masculine characters and language can be detrimental to girls' gender role socialization. Teachers can ameliorate these effects by choosing and reading books with a balance of male and female characters and by altering wording to improve this balance. (AC) * Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document. *********************************************************************** U S DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION Ohc of Educahonat Rsearch and Improvement EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES INFORMATION CENTER (ERIC) Xtnis document has been febrocluced as erenred from the Persc" o 0,08^.2at'On ongmahngft ri Minor changes have been made to imorowe reproductfon duahly Pont s of y.ew oapnons staled fn this dOCu meni do not necessanly represent officlat OE R! OOSfIfOn of poltcy Gender Equity in Picture Books in Preschool Classrooms: An Exploratory Study Michelle B. Patt UIC Children's Center (m/c 525) University of Illinois Box 6998 Chicago, Illinois 60680 (312) 413-5327 Brent A. McBride University of Illinois 1105 W. Nevada Urbana, Illinois 61801 (217) 333-0971 Running head: GENDER EQUITY IN PICTURE BOOKS 'PERMISSION TO REPRODUCE THIS MATERIAL HAS BEEN GRANTED BY