Take+Home+Message

Take Home Message Being female has implications in schooling and learning. As educators, we not only need to be aware of these implications but we also need to recognize the ways in which we contribute to the situation (both consciously and subconsciously).

What can we do as teachers? Remember the need to consider both females and males as individuals – how each of their motivational levels, learning styles, estimations of abilities and other differences affect academic achievement.

__In school, girls are praised for their appearance while boys are praised for their intellectual work. (University of Michigan, 2007)__

__"__ __Girls are praised primarily for being neat, quiet, and calm." (Bailey, 1992)__ -At the beginning of the day, note 3-5 students that you will make an effort to praise that day. Be conscious of the sort of praise you are giving. If this is repeated daily (choosing different students each day), not only will you assure that every student receives praise, but you will also be more aware of this behaviour on your part.

__It makes little difference to most students whether they are taught by a man or woman. It is the quality of the teaching, not the gender that matters. (Campbell, 1994)__

__Research shows that girls are called on less often in class. This may be because girls lack the self-confidence to participate. (Campbell, 1994)__ -Use the SmartBoard application that randomly selects students. This will assure that calling on students becomes completely objective. If a SmartBoard is not available, put all your students' names in a jar and select one each time.

__Sex is not a good predictor of academic skills or interests. There is no such thing as a “math gene” or "arts gene". (Campbell, 1994)__

-Treat each student as an individual and remember that skills and abilities will vary from student to student and from subject to subject.

__79% of Elementary teachers are women. (Census, 2004)__

__While most education programs provide training on diversity, learning disabilities, and discipline, they do not provide instruction that addresses gender issues in the classroom. (Sanders, 2003)__

Educate yourself. This presentation can only touch on some of the issues.

__Gender-biased language does effect female job performance in the classroom. (O'Conner, 1998)__ -Erase words such as "guys" from your vocabulary both inside and outside the classroom. When you are out of the habbit of saying these things, it will no longer be a problem for you. - Be aware of sayings such as "you throw like a girl" and bring their falsehood to the attention of your students.

-Melanie (Hope this is ok everyone)


 * Here's what I came up with for my sentences/summary of the issues for the video; I think I did it at least relatively correctly??

__-"Female students receive less reinforcement in the classroom (ie: praise, extra help, etc)." --- Davidson, A.L (2002) (&) Jones, S. (2004)__

__-"Unequal reprimanding for calling out in class harbors the notion that female students should be passive in discussions." --- Davidson, A.L. (2002)__ -Set up your class rules and subsequent consequence at the beginning of the school year. Be conscious of these rules and be sure to enforce them for everyone.

__-"Female students are called on less for answers and discussion in class." --- Jones, S. (2004)__

__-"Female students are offered less 'wait time' for answers than male students." --- Jones, S. (2004) (&) Renda Abu El-Haj, T. (2003)__ - Decide for youself what a reasonable wait time is and consciously allow this for each student. You may need to reference the clock or count in your head. Either way, be consistent.

__-"Female students are assumed to be more often drawn to arts than mathematics." --- Renda Abu El-Haj, T. (2003), (&) Loewen, J. (1986). (&) Sadker, M., & D. (1991)__

Encourage __all__ students to participate in any given subject and be sure to offer __all__ students opportunities that arise outside of classroom (i.e. science fairs, poetry contests, etc).

__-"Teachers foster implications of 'gender appropriate' occupations." --- Loewen, J. (1986) (&) Sadker, M., & D. (1991)__ Be aware of this and wherever possible present examples of both males and females in any particular occupation.

-__"Female students are more often reprimanded for speaking out and chatting in class." --- Davidson, A.L. (2002)__

---Amanda**