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Education and Gender

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Examples of subject areas that I can consider for my report (There is some overlap)

1. GIRLS AND BOYS: DIFFERENCES IN THE CLASSROOM
2. SEXUAL IDENTITY, SEXUAL ORIENTATION
3. GENDER-ROLE IDENTITY. STUDENTS STRUGGLING WITH SEXUAL IDENTITY.
4. GENDER SCHEMA THEORY.
5. GENDER-ROLE STEREOTYPING IN THE PRESCHOOL YEARS.
6. GENDER BIAS IN THE CURRICULUM.
7. SEX DISCRIMINATION IN THE CLASSROOM.
8. SEX DIFFERENCES IN MENTAL ABILITIES.
9. ELIMINATING GENDER BIAS.
10. AVOIDING SEXISM IN TEACHING.

Can you provide research findings in each of these areas to consider for my report? Thank you.

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Solution Summary

This solution examines gender differences in education across a number of areas e.g. differences between girls and boys in the classroom, gender identity and orientation, gender schema theory, gender-role stereotyping in preschool, gender biases in the curriculum, sex discrimination in the classroom, sex differences in mental abilities, strategies to eliminate gender biases and avoiding sexism in teaching. Extensive coverage of research for each area.

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Please see response attached for best formatting, which is also presented below. I hope this helps and take care.

RESPONSE:

Interesting research project! Let's take a look at some of the research for each section, which you can draw on for your final copy. This is not exhaustive, but should get you started.

1. GIRLS AND BOYS: DIFFERENCES IN THE CLASSROOM

In one study, gender differences were found in all of the following:

· Class Administration - activities that usually take place at the start of a lesson - settling pupils, giving general instructions, giving out material. These items were also recorded when the class was prepared for dismissal at the lesson end.
· Lesson Core - Observations here were made during teacher input of content - if male or female characters were discussed, e.g. in a Kestrel for a Knave, or examples used to illustrate a principle.
· Questions asked of - refers to occasions when a teacher directed a question at a specific boy or girl usually by name but often taking one volunteer from many hands up.
· Questions asked by - refers to the occasions when a member of the class asked the teacher a question directly, either to repeat instructions or to clarify the teaching point.
· Tasks allocated to - records the distribution of activities such as giving out books, going errands or within the class organisation e.g. group work tasks.
· Discipline of - refers to occasions when the teacher reprimands a pupil. Often this would be a simple corrective instruction like "turn round" or "get on with your work". Only instances directed at individual pupils were recorded.
· Other transactions - this was included at the planning stage to allow for transactions that might not be predicted. It turned out to include many, mainly informal, transactions e.g. advice on redrafting work, words of praise; informal questioning to assist understanding; humor; praise encouragement to finish work, advice on presentation and layout (see full study and results at http://www.scre.ac.uk/rie/nl52/nl52scrimgeour.html).

For example, the researchers found that the raw scores for each category were statistically adjusted to represent an equal number of girls and boys in each class. These were then calculated as percentages to allow direct comparisons. In every category, in each subject observed, the boys had greater scores than the girls. Boys dominated the transactions or 'male' issues predominated, in one situation by 89% to 11% (class administration maths). http://www.scre.ac.uk/rie/nl52/nl52scrimgeour.html

From another source:

This source reports that we know from national data sets that girls continue to lag behind boys on science achievement scores. More importantly than the test scores themselves are levels of interest. Girls are taking fewer AP courses in science at the high school level, are less likely to select science majors in college, and are less likely to pursue occupations in science-related fields after college. A prime example of this trend can be seen in our own institution, reports the researchers. Currently only 16% of first-year students at the University of Illinois in engineering (which includes the related fields of physics and computer science) are women-this is in spite of efforts to recruit female as well as male students. http://library.adoption.com/Child-Development/Understanding-Gender-Differences-that-May-Occur-in-Classroom-Settings/article/3379/1.html

2. SEXUAL IDENTITY, SEXUAL ORIENTATION

From one source:

Bertram and Hammack (2007) examine the application of concepts of normal adolescence pioneered by Offer and colleagues to the study of gay and lesbian youth. Adolescent development among this population demonstrates remarkable historical variability along the lines of generation-cohort (meaning that the narratives the children use to explain their sexual identity has changed over time), revealing the utility of a life-course approach to the study of normal adolescence. Concepts of normal adolescence appear to shift with changing narratives of identity for sexual minority youth. We contrast two narratives of gay youth identity development that have emerged since the inception of substantive research programs on gay adolescence: (1) the "narrative of struggle and success" that came to dominate the literature in the 1980s and 1990s and (2) the "narrative of emancipation" that has emerged from the work of Savin-Williams and others who argue for a recognition of the diversity of adolescent development for this population. In relating this contrast to Offer's seminal contributions to the study of adolescence, we suggest that the most normative feature of human development, particularly during adolescence, is its connection to discourses of identity through the formation of personal narratives that anchor the life course and provide meaning to conceptions of self-development. The example of shifting narratives of gay youth identity development is meant to exemplify this characteristic feature of human development (abstract) (http://www.eric.ed.gov/ERICWebPortal/Home.portal?_nfpb=true&ERICExtSearch_Operator_2=and&ERICExtSearch_SearchType_0=kw&ERICExtSearch_SearchValue_2=&ERICExtSearch_SearchValue_1=&ERICExtSearch_Operator_1=and&ERICExtSearch_SearchType_1=kw&ERICExtSearch_PubDate_To=2007&ERICExtSearch_SearchValue_0=SEXUAL+IDENTITY+&ERICExtSearch_SearchType_2=kw&ERICExtSearch_SearchCount=2&ERICExtSearch_PubDate_From=0&_pageLabel=ERICSearchResult&newSearch=true&rnd=1184565203475&searchtype=advanced).

From another source:

Horn (2007) investigated tenth- and twelfth-grade adolescents' (N less than or equal to 264) judgments about the acceptability of same-sex peers who varied in terms of their sexual orientation (straight, gay or lesbian) and their conformity to gender conventions or norms in regard to appearance and mannerisms or activity. Overall, the results of this study suggest that adolescents' conceptions of the acceptability of their peers are related not just to sexual orientation but also conformity to gender conventions. Both straight and gay or lesbian individuals who were non-conventional in their appearance and mannerisms were rated as less acceptable than individuals who conformed to gender conventions or those who participated in non-conventional activities. Most surprisingly, for boys, the straight individual who was non-conforming in appearance was rated less acceptable than either the gay individual who conformed to gender norms or was gender non-conforming in choice of activity. http://www.eric.ed.gov/ERICWebPortal/Home.portal?_nfpb=true&ERICExtSearch_Operator_2=and&ERICExtSearch_SearchType_0=kw&ERICExtSearch_SearchValue_2=&ERICExtSearch_SearchValue_1=&ERICExtSearch_Operator_1=and&ERICExtSearch_SearchType_1=kw&ERICExtSearch_PubDate_To=2007&ERICExtSearch_SearchValue_0=SEXUAL+IDENTITY+&ERICExtSearch_SearchType_2=kw&ERICExtSearch_SearchCount=2&ERICExtSearch_PubDate_From=0&_pageLabel=ERICSearchResult&newSearch=true&rnd=1184565203475&searchtype=advanced

The last study suggests that peer acceptance of sexual orientation has increased over time. (my opinion)

3. A. GENDER-ROLE IDENTITY. B. STUDENTS STRUGGLING WITH SEXUAL IDENTITY.

A. GENDER-ROLE IDENTITY

From one source:

In Erik Erikson's stages of psychosocial development, the emergence of an identity crisis occurs during the teenage years in which people struggle between feelings of identity versus role confusion. Researcher James Maria (1966, 1976, 1980) has expanded upon Erikson's initial theory. According to Marcia and his colleagues, the balance between identity and confusion lies in making a commitment to an identity. Marcia also developed an interview method to measure identity as well as four different identity statuses. This methods looks at three different areas of functioning: occupational role, beliefs and values, and sexuality. http://psychology.about.com/od/theoriesofpersonality/a/identitycrisis.htm

From another source:

Based on Erikson's theory, teachers and parents need to encourage the activities and tasks to help the child form a solid sense of identity (who am I?):

Preschool: Initiative vs. guilt

· Preschool (3 to 5 years) Initiative vs. Guilt. Exploration. Children need to begin asserting control and power over the environment. Success in this stage leads to a sense of purpose. Children who try to exert too much power experience disapproval, resulting in a sense of guilt. Learning to do things on their own

? To encourage initiative:
- Encourage children to make and act on choices.
- Make sure each child has a chance to experience success.
- Encourage make-believe with a wide variety of roles.
- Be tolerant of accidents and mistakes, especially when children are attempting to do something ...

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