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Gender Issues“Getting it Right for Boys and Girls”

Dr Rosemary Taylor

PARIS COBIS CONFERENCE 2013

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Different from Birth...

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Early Gender Differences

• Boy babies are less sensitive to faces

• Girl babies have a much better sense of touch

• Girls are more sensitive to noise

• Boys grow faster

• Boys are more troubled by separation

• Boy toddlers move around more and need more space

• They like to build high buildings from blocks

• Adults treat boys more harshly

• They receive fewer cuddles

• Adults talk less to boy babies

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Two Cars?

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Nursery Classes

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LegolandBoys

– working alone

– building towers

– throwing Lego bricks around

– shouting

– moving between different work stations

– knocking over each other’s constructions

– trying to build the tallest structure

Girls

– working together

– building houses and pyramids

– talking quietly to each other

– sharing Lego bricks

– staying at the same workstation

– deciding who will live in their houses

– fending off boyswww.keyissues.org

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Effective Performance

• Where males perform more effectively:– hitting a target with a

missile

– mentally rotating an object

– listening with only one half of the brain

• Where females perform more effectively:– fine motor skills

– verbal memory

– better peripheral vision

– listening with both sides of the brain

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Listening

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Taking Risks

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BOYS

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Profile of a Boy• What are the typical comments he says in class

and on the playground?• How does popular culture influence his school

life and learning?• What does he value most and how is this different

from what you value?• How does his family influence his school life and

learning?• How do his friends influence his school life and

learning?• What factors, if any, prevent him from reaching

his potential?www.keyissues.org

Growing Up: Six to Eleven• Even those who have watched little TV mimic

characters, want to play with weapons, fight and wrestle and make lots of noise

• Suddenly want more time with Dad or closest male –if they fail to get it, they may develop problem behaviour

• Mums still matter – her absence or withdrawal can cause an emotional ‘shutting down’

• Hugging is still important

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Growing Up: Eleven to Thirteen

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Early Teens• Has to ‘download the software’ from an available male

to complete his development• Usual to become a little argumentative, restless and

moody• Need answers to big questions, new adventures, new

challenges• Hungry for something more• Need to find something to engage him• Old societies – from Inuit to African – mid-teen boys

received a burst of intensive care

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Later Teens

• Greater concentration on things directed at career considerations

• Focus on strength and masculinity (fearing perceived weakness)

• Social acceptance based on physical strength and athleticism

• Social hierarchies become more stable• Achieves greater academic success post-puberty, IQ

scores rise dramatically 14-16• More likely to be involved in criminal behaviour

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Boys Will Be Boys...

Boys are typically:-

• energetic

• action-orientated

• physical

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Boys Will Be Boys...

• His needs:-

– to be accepted

– to be respected– to be admired

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Boys Will Be Boys...

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• Boys particularly value:-

– excitement

– humour

– courage

– justice

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Boys As Risk-Takers

• Boys are more likely to raise their hands in class in a ratio over girls of 6:1

• Boys set themselves up to be knocked down, making them vulnerable learners

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Risk-Taking Behaviour

• Bad risk-taking behaviour:– Alcohol; drugs; sex; criminal behaviour; anti-

social/challenging behaviour

• Good risk-taking behaviour:– Challenging academic work; positions of

responsibility; public performance; physical challenges

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Safety

• The bottom line is safety…by fifteen years of age boys are three times more likely than girls to die from accidents, violence and suicide.

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The Male Brain

• Needs more stimulation than the female brain

• Becomes bored more quickly

• Enjoys risk, craves adventure

• Likes to focus on one activity at a time

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Hearing

• Slightly longer cochlea response time

• Predominantly right-eared• Less able to pick up nuances

of voice and other sounds• Needs more volume• Struggles with high-pitched

sounds

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Negative Stress for Boys• Situations that cause him to lose face• Fear of being punished• Fear of being bullied• Fear of having shortcomings exposed• Being called names/branded• Competing for space• Not having completed/understood work• Lack of routines/boundaries• Loss of property

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Under Pressure?

The Reptilian

Brain

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Underachievement of Boys

• Issues relating to early reading and writing• Girls out-performing boys at most levels• Media • Maturity• Teachers and teaching• Examinations• Role models• Employment prospects• ‘Laddish’ traits = ‘feelgood’ factor

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As It Says In The Advert...

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“get the head right and the rest will follow…”

Motivation

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• Self-esteem

• ‘Mastery’• Visualisation

• Hooks• Starters/warm-ups

• Targets• Choice

“Catch Him Getting It Right..”

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POSITIVE STEPS FOR BOYS:– Set small achievable

steps– Describe steps in the

right direction– Put a positive label on

productive behaviour

LessonsStandard lesson

• presentation of learning objectives/starter

• introduction (‘teacher talk’)

• 40 minute activity• plenary

Boy-Friendly lesson• brain warm-up

• presentation of lesson format• introduction• 10 minute activity

• review• brain break

• reminder of objectives• 10 minute activity• review

• 10 minute activity• Brain break

• Review• plenary

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Teaching Boys

1. Start early2. The ‘Mad Puppy’ syndrome3. Risk-taking4. Boredom and Short-terminism5. Competition6. Laziness7. Class Clown8. Kinaesthetic learning9. Sceptics and Cynics10.Praise and Motivation

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Boy Friendly Lessons• Pair boys with girls during listening tasks• Plan for regular breaks during an activity• Let boys tell each other what they’ve learned• Provide risk and competition• Provide clear success criteria with reasons• Take physical brain breaks• Partition learning into shorter blocks• Use competitive learning teams• Use team roles• Call lessons challenges

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Writing Frames

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Using writing fames to raise boys’ achievement:Boys find writing easier, more enjoyable and less threatening when given a framework or structure that supports them.They make content and the treatment of content transparent and accessible.

Group Work

Teach implicitly – it doesn’t come naturally....Students who work in cooperative groups usually achieve more than those who work alone or work competitively.

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Test Them!

• Ask students to design and write the test that they then do next lesson....

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Test Them!

• They mark their own tests and devise an agreed mark scheme!

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Why Is It Best?

Ask students to find their best piece of work and then to tell you why it is their best…..

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GIRLS

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Profile of a Girl• What are the typical comments she says in class

and on the playground?• How does popular culture influence her school

life and learning?• What does she value most and how is this

different from what you value?• How does her family influence her school life and

learning?• How do her friends influence her school life and

learning?• What factors, if any, prevent her from reaching

her potential?www.keyissues.org

Social Development

Age StageBirth-2 Self-awareness

2-3 Parallel Play

3-6 Interactive Play

6-8 Transitory Friendships

8-10 Friendship Clusters

10-12 Best Friends

12-14 Cliques

14+ Interest-Based Friendships

17+ (Almost) Universal Acceptance

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Girl Brains

• Cognitive areas– Left-sided

• Integrated brain– Uses both hemispheres

• The Amygdala– The emotional centre

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Girls Will Be Girls…“It’s pretty hard being a girl nowadays. You can’t

be too clever, too dumb, too pretty, too ugly, too friendly, too shy, too aggressive, too defenceless, too individual or too programmed. If you’re too

much of anything, then others envy you, or despise you because you intimidate them or make them jealous. It’s like you have to be everything and nothing all at once, without knowing which

you need more of.”

Naomi, Year 10

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Girls Need to Feel…

• Confident

• Competent

• Connected

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Low Self-Esteem

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Female Performance

• More sensitive to nuances of expression and gesture

• Better judge of character• More people orientated

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Tasks and Assessment

• Boys perform better on tasks that are:– task and action-based

– experiential

– information dense

• Girls perform better on tasks that are:– extended

– open-ended

– multi-concept

– text-based

– interpersonal

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Literacy

• Female brain structure causes dominance

• Girls enjoy tutoring others

• They like journals, diaries, debates and discussions

• High expectations, encouragement and constructive feedback are vital

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Girls and Computers• Marked disparity between boys and

girls

• Encourage girls to use the computer to research, extend and present their ideas

• Girls may need more help in the spatial and abstract computation elements

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Maths & Science

• Can be harder for girls –especially when taught by a male teacher…

• They feign boredom in defence

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Challenge

• Self-belief is the most common problem with girls

• Let them know what their talents are

• Girls like to be people-pleasers, but encourage them to praise and judge their own efforts rather than seeking approval from others

• Praise girls for trying new things – encourage them to take risks

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Able Girls

• Able girls in the classroom are less likely to draw attention to themselves than able boys. They are more capable of keeping ‘busy’ or waiting quietly...

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Queen Bees and Wannabees

• The alpha female

• The betas

• The gamma girls

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Bullying• The typical girl who bullies is popular, well-liked by adults, does

well in school, and can even be friends with the girls she bullies

• She usually bullies in a group and others join in or pressure her to bully

• She spreads rumours, gossips, excludes others, shares secrets, uses hostile body language and teases

• Cyber-bullying is on the increase

• Bullying amongst girls has always centred on more indirect aggression and text messages and the internet are ideal vehicles for that

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Why Gender Matters

GIRLS who bully typically:

• Have many friends

• Are socially skilled

• Act in groups to isolate a single girl

• Are doing well in school

• Know the girls they are bullying

BOYS who bully typically:

• Have few friends

• Are socially inept

• Act alone

• Are doing poorly in school

• Don’t know the boys (or girls) they bully

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The Trouble With Girls…

• Far higher numbers of girls than boys affected by self-harm and eating disorders….

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Girls…

• Watch more TV – especially adverts

• Read more magazines

• Lack role models

• Tune in to conversations at home

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The China Syndrome…

• Happens when a father invests more heavily in his relationship with his son than with his daughter

• The daughter is assigned second-class status, and she knows it

• The father-daughter relationship is a learning ground for understanding and relating to other males

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Some Common Assumptions

1. We should try to make boys and girls equal bymaking them the same

2. Boys and girls learn in the same way and in apredictable order.

3. If you want to achieve in life, learn to read and writeas early as possible.

4. Indoor, sedentary learning is more valuable thanoutdoor learning.

5. Boys are noisier, louder and have no sensitivity; girlsare quiet and have little capacity for adventure.

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And Finally…

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