The Edutopia Poll
by Sara Bernard
A recent study slated for publication in the quarterly journal Education Next has generated headlines nationwide. "The Why Chromosome: How a Teacher's Gender Affects Boys and Girls," by Thomas Dee, associate professor at Swarthmore College and visiting scholar at Stanford University, suggests that a significant correlation exists between the gender of the teacher and the success of the student -- that is, girls learn more from women and boys learn more from men.
Though the study's author warns against jumping to conclusions based on his findings, they've nevertheless stirred up concern and provoked discussion. Have you seen evidence during your career as an educator, or when you were a student, that supports the findings of Dee's study? We're interested in your opinion.
Does teacher gender affect student learning?
Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on April 15, 2008 - 06:36.
I am in tenth grade and have only had one male teacher. So i dont really know which one i learn better from or if theres a difference.
I think male teachers are
Submitted by Student (not verified) on January 14, 2008 - 22:33.
I think male teachers are overall better. They just command more respect from me and generally are more energic than all of my female teachers. they also handle disruptancies better, since they always take firm approaches unlike the women.
Age of students, age of teacher
Submitted by Lauren Boulton (not verified) on November 5, 2007 - 10:56.
It needs to be remembered that Dee's study was an observation of only eighth graders. When I was in middle school, I was much more intimidated by men. As I grew older, I found that it was EASIER for me to learn from men. I think that as opinions are more deeply formed, F2F teaching relationships can become strained. Women are much more tense with female students and expect more out of them. I've found that males are easy going with girls and more likely to listen to debate and (constructive) commentary from them. I think age also has a lot of precedence. If a teacher is younger, students probably find them more approachable. I think that when it comes down to it, though, gender is a lot less important than personal experience. I'm doing a study with high school students and gender. I'll report my results here when I finish it!
it depends...
Submitted by Ire Obatoki (not verified) on September 8, 2007 - 16:18.
it generally depends on the type of student you're teaching you have to study them, for example i find it easier to communicate and talk to my female teachers than the male ones... and age also depnds too, most girls that are sociable and hang out with boys more often tend to listen and communicate with their young male teachers with their minds on the plain teaching-learning processes, but girls like that find it hard to easily approach casually and learn from the older ones, because they demand more cautious approach and respect.
Our teacher is so sexist, no
Submitted by jack smitherland (not verified) on January 12, 2007 - 18:51.
Our teacher is so sexist, no males have failed his class, he ignores our (girls) questions when we raise our hand and ask for help!
i think the gender greatly
Submitted by raymond kim (not verified) on January 9, 2007 - 22:06.
i think the gender greatly affects the the teacher learning because if have a specife feature thall be funny
As a principal I have always
Submitted by Larry J. Thomas (not verified) on September 18, 2006 - 20:05.
As a principal I have always tried to staff a male teacher in each grade level. I know from my own experience that I didn't have a male teacher until 5th grade. I was petrified by him and thought that he was mean like my dad and my uncles. I really did learn from him but it was out of fear. He taught me to count; and do math and science with enthusiasm.
I think children need an equal balance of male and female teachers in their lives. It really makes for a healthy outlook on life. The reason I decided to become a teacher was due to my adoration for my 3rd grade teacher. The reason I wanted to be an administrator was due to my relationship with my God Father (the Late Fred Crockette Of Quitman County Mississippi). He was the elementary principal in my grandmother's home town of Sledge,Mississippi. He demonstrated good work ethics and a love for a job you love.
Larry J. thomas, Principal. Edward Coles Language Academy
I have taught for many years
Submitted by Dan Rogers (not verified) on September 13, 2006 - 18:49.
I have taught for many years with both male and female teachers, the one most evident difference was not gender, but expectations and enthusiasm of the teacher. To a great extent my experience has been with inner city students where no one expects them to achieve anything, much less excel. When students are challenged they usually live up to the expectations of the teacher, because this is the source of the most influence in their lives. I have seen teachers who do not care other than students are to be quiet. That is about all that the students give, silence is a poor teacher. Excited kids spread enthusiasm and it becomes the norm be eager to come to class to learn.
I have done a number of
Submitted by Bob Dove (not verified) on September 14, 2006 - 12:04.
I have done a number of teacher observations over the years using a seating chart with race and gender labled on the seats and arrows tracking eye contact as well as numbers to track teacher contact with students (calling on them) and students with their hands raised to answer questions. Bias can be evidenced in race, gender, location, or teacher expection of particular students. The best way to eliminate bias is to make the teacher aware of it. Let them see it from objective data and decide what they want to do about it. Most teachers don't know they are biased until they see the data.
I am a 61 year old white
Submitted by Kathleen Petrelli (not verified) on September 16, 2006 - 04:53.
I am a 61 year old white female Career and Technical Education teacher (aka Vocational Education) and I have been teaching for over twenty years in the School District of Philadelphia.
But one thing I know is that most of my students don't look at me and see the person I have described in the above statement.
They know I'm smart, funny and crazy at times. They know I really care about them and will do anything to help them find their place in this world.
I know them…I know who likes to rap, who can draw, who likes anime, who listens to music and who can play music, who skateboards, who plays sports and who is just a spectator. I know who is good in academic subjects and who needs help.
Because I know all these things about each and every student of mine, I know how to make the technology available in my Digital Media Arts class work for them. I want them to see the big picture! I want them to have dreams and a backup plan.
It doesn't really matter what a teacher is (male, female, old, young, white, black, green, blue) what does matter is the ability of the teacher to connect with each and every student.
I will never be as good at what I do as they deserve, but it won't be because I didn't try.
These are the things I think are important if you plan on a career in education.
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