Gender Differences in Learning:
One Size Does Not Fit All
Session Goals
• Garner insights into differences in attention,
learning, and actions based on physiological
gender characteristics.
• Learn effective and differentiated (at
times)strategies to engage all students.
• Understand why boys struggle in a primarily
feminine culture.
• Acknowledge the differences rest on a
spectrum and not on absolutes.
THE CORE ISSUE:
MEN ARE LIKE WAFFLES
WOMEN are LIKE SPAGHETTI
GENDER STEROTYPES
The masculine boy and the feminine girl…
Gender covers a spectrum from “absolute to,
it depends” on the situation, where you
grew up, what your personal interests are,
your temperament, and the survival skills
you learn at home and at school.
Susan Kovalik, Highly Effective Teaching 2009
MEN AS NATION BUILDERS
 They were the first builders, explorers, hunters, artists,
doctors, scientists, architects. They developed roads,
bridges, shelters, covered wagons, weapons, log cabins,
wheeled carts, cars, trains, trucks (all uses from the
smallest to the largest excavators), created mines, logging
mills, boats, ships, canoes, houses, water wells. They are
mechanics, veterinarians, farriers, create MODERN
MARVELS, engage DIRTY JOBS, and are everyday scientists.
 They developed roads/highways, telephone lines, inventions
old (from zippers to fax machines to palm pilots) and new,
planes, jets, rocket ships, space station, subways,
technology: Steve Jobs and Bill Gates……..blackberries,
ipods, to the pixel technology used during the Inauguration.
Susan Kovalik, Highly Effective Teaching 2009
Today many boys are
bystanders in a virtual
world
THE POWER OF VIDEO GAMES
 They are in charge of the action
 Immediate Feedback
 Meets the need for action
 Can lose themselves in the game
 Highly competitive
CULTURAL AUTISM
The end result of a childhood with more
time spent in front of a computer
than outdoors is what author Richard
Louv, Last Child in the Woods, coins
as cultural autism resulting in tunneled
senses, feelings of isolation and
containment and a wired ‘know-it-all’
state of mind.
Susan Kovalik, Highly Effective Teaching 2009
SILENT EPIDEMIC
 7,000 a day drop out of school
Will earn $290,000 less over their
lifetimes
68% will need public assistance
 20% likely to be involved in violent
behavior
Children see
“BOYS ADRIFT” BY LEONARD SAX
Possible considerations for the
changes in boys today:
 School
 Home
 Video Games
 Endocrine Disruptors
 Medication
PHYSIOLOGICAL DIFFERENCES
The brain differences between boys and girls are
more profound than anybody ever guessed.
Key areas to understand:
Hearing
Vision
Emotion
THE EYES HAVE IT
Boy’s eyes focus on
movementWHERE IS IT
GOING?
Avoid sitting by the
windows or working
in the hall
COLOR RANGE
Girl’s eyes focus on
the details,
WHAT IS IT?
COLOR RANGE
VISION
What attracts the attention of
newborns:
Girls - Human faces
Boys - Moving objects- a mobile
VISION
The male retina has mostly the larger, thicker ganglion cells.
Where is it? Where is it going?
The female has predominantly the smaller, thinner ganglion cells.
What is it?
Females gather information about color, texture , and many details.
IMPLICATIONS FOR CLASSROOM
Boys should sit in the front of the class so
they can clearly hear the teacher and are
not distracted by what others are doing.
Windows are a distraction and so is working
out in the hallway
CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW?
 The range of
sounds surrounding
speech are
difficult for boys
to hear.
 They should sit in the
front of class to hear
teacher
 Communicate with a
boy while in a car
 Girl’s hearing is 10X
more acute than
boys.
Loud voices, loud
music, sidebar
chatter are
distracting, if male
teacher has loud
voice they believe
they are being
yelled at.
HEARING
Newborns-music in the nursery
Range of sound surrounding speech
Can they hear you?
Girls are distracted by noise levels about ten times
softer than noise levels that boys find distracting
NOUNS AND VERBS
Boys draw verbs:
Crashing
Flying,
Speeding
Fighting
Skiing
Skating
Girls draw nouns:
Houses
Family members
Trees
Pets
Flowers
Rainbows
FAVORITE RECESS ACTIVITY
Recess for boys is:
Recess for girls is:
running
kicking balls,
catching balls,
playing tag.
Talking
Talking
Talking
Talking
brainstorm
COLLABORATION/COMPETITION
Boys enjoy
competition, being
on a team, not
letting their team
mates down
Girls prefer to “talk
about” it and come
to a solution where
everybody wins.
HOMEWORK
Boys will do it if it
interests them!
Projects that
require making
something, solving a
problem or inventing
a new game
Girls will do it
because they care
about what the
teacher thinks of
them
STRESS
For Boys:
Girls:
Stress enhances the
growth of neural
connections in the
male hippocampus,
and improves learning
in some situations
Stress inhibits the
neural connections in
the hippocampus
DEVELOPMENTALLY APPROPRIATE
The developmental
language area of a
five year old boy
looks like the
language level of a
3 ½ year old boy
Boys spatial memory
develops 4 years
earlier than girls
Girls fine motor
and language skills
mature about 6
years earlier
PERCEPTION IS REALITY
If a boy fails in kindergarten, especially
today when the Kindergarten curriculum is
equivalent to the first grade of years past,
they hold the idea that they are not smart.
HOW DO YOU FEEL?
 Boys
 Hard to verbalize
as the connection
between the limbic
system and the
language system are
not as wired as a
females
 An action movie,
car chases, good
guys and bad guys,
shooting and
crashing.
 Girls
 A good ‘chick
movie’, a television
show that expresses
feelings (American
Idol, Dancing with
the Stars, Extreme
Makeover all, “feel
good” experiences
RISK TAKING BEHAVIOR
Boys take the risk
because it is there
Engage in risk
taking events within
the family.
Girls ask, “Why
would they do
that?”
The gender differences are so
specific that, in many ways the
second grade girl is more like a
twenty-five year old woman than a
second grade boy.
BOYS WILL BE BOYS BEHAVIOR
Rough and Tumble
Like recess best, running, throwing balls etc.
Punches pal to show he likes him
If in a fight, will be best friends tomorrow
FEELINGS
Asking a 7 year old to tell you why
they are sad or distressed is
difficult for them because the
wiring from the emotional center of
the brain has little direct
connection to the verbal center in
the cerebral cortex.
EMOTION AND GIRLS
Reflective Thinking
Journal Writing
Reading
Sharing with other girls
GIRLS AND RECESS
Girls like recess best because
they can talk with their
friends
SCHOOL
The curriculum of kindergarten today is
essentially the first-grade curriculum of thirty
years ago.
Starting students reading before they are ready
can actually boomerang and turn them off to
reading.
-Boys who fail to do well in kindergarten
develop negative perceptions of
competence, and those negative
attitudes are difficult to reverse as they
progress through school.
It is much more difficult to unlearn
something learned incorrectly than to
learn it correctly the first time.
WHERE OUR BOYS STAND:
70% of students in special education are boys….
80% discipline referrals (many on medication)
Boys earn two thirds of the D’s and F’s
Nationally boys are a year and a half behind girls in
literacy (Response To Intervention) Gender
differences?
…..The Minds of Boys, Michael Gurian, Kathy Stevens
SCHOOL WORK
Girls are more likely to do their homework
even if the assignment doesn’t interest
them. They want the approval of the
teacher.
Boys will be less motivated unless they
find the material intrinsically interesting.
Fine
motor and language skills mature
about six years earlier in girls.
In boys spatial memory matures about
four years earlier.
Once over thirty these differences even
out.
ADOLESCENT EMOTIONS
Brain activity dealing with emotions moves up to
cerebral cortex, language center (reflection,
reasoning, language)
A 17 year old girl will be able to explain why she
is sad in great detail
Not so for boys!
LITERATURE
Introduce a piece of literature by reading the
most exciting, action-filled pages first….
Have them do some predicting and then begin in
earnest
In processing literature have boys draw maps of
the setting indicating where events took place
TO IMPROVE WRITING
Encourage boys to brainstorm with
pictures before they write their
stories.
MALES ARE PROBLEM SOLVERS
They want to attend to something
presented and stay with it until
completion. (Must be interesting and
best if involves physical movement)
Movement between classes doesn’t count.
STRATEGIES
-Guyify your classroom to balance
-Ask yourself the question, “What will they DO in
order to learn skills, concepts, standards,
knowledge?” and make their learning involve
movement as often as possible.
-Become informed about what they are good at
outside of school
-Consider offering instruction in some gender
specific settings
COLLABORATION
Boys will collaborate as a team to win the
competition, they don’t want to let their team
down.
Moderate stress improves boys’ performance on
tests – while the same stress degrades young
girls performance on tests.
BOYS TAKING RISKS
Three principles when reducing risk behavior
that could lead to serious injury:
1. “Boys in groups do stupid things.”
2. Supervised is better than unsupervised
(organized sport, skiing, camping, scouts)
3. Parents and teachers assert your authority
“Don’t argue, don’t negotiate, just do what you
need to do.”
ADEQUATE TIME
School schedules hamper completion of a
problem and/or the attainment of
success.
Think about drama, sports, dance, or any
activity where assessment is authenticwe give it adequate time.
ADULT GENDER DIFFERENCES
Men are like waffles, his thinking is divided up
into little boxes that have room for one issue
at a time.
When he is at work, he is at work
When in the garage, he is in the garage
When watching sports, he is watching sports
MALES FEEL BEST:
WHEN THERE IS A PROBLEM TO SOLVE
When what they do makes them feel successful
Knowing that the computer makes predictable
moves and gives predictable feedback
WOMEN/SPAGHETTI
LIKE spaghetti, every thought
and issue is connected to
every other thought and
issue in some way. Life is a
myriad of connections
EVERYTHING IS CONNECTED
FEMALES PERCEIVE the WORLD WHERE
EVERYTHING IS CONNECTED.
They want order out of disorder, and
something significant to do.
HOW WAS WORK TODAY?
A female
response……………………
A male response……………..
CLASSROOM STRATEGIES
 Projects
 Team events
Science Fairs
 Field Trips
 Aerobics
 Clear targets for
each lesson
 Role playing
 Enrichment
activities
 Extensions to
lessons
ENDOCRINE DISRUPTORS
Environmental estrogens:– bisphenol A
and phthalates found in plastic
bottles (soda, water, baby) pacifiers,
Susan Kovalik, Highly Effective Teaching 2009
ENVIRONMENTAL ESTROGENS
Effects not confined to the brain
They appear to make boys and girls fat
contributing to childhood obesity
Causes fat cell to get bigger
63.7 percent of boys have their first
broken bone by age 15 (39.1% of girls)
Susan Kovalik, Highly Effective Teaching 2009
RESULT OF TOXINS:
Girls are both masculine and feminine
Boys are neither masculine or
feminine
Boys today have 3x more genital
abnormalities than 30 years ago
Lower testosterone levels
Leonard Sax, Why Gender Matters, “boys adrift”
WHAT YOU CAN DO?
Avoid plastic bottles, use glass instead, for babies
and the rest of us!
Do not use plastic wrap on food you are reheating in
the microwave
Cook or reheat in microwave with glass plates and
not plastic
Look for products labeled “PVC-free”
Do not put sealant on your children’s teeth unless
the dentist can prove they are phthalate-free
Susan Kovalik, Highly Effective Teaching 2009
ADHD
Primarily boys who don’t focus, fidget,
are inattentive….
Onset before seven years old
www.amenclinic.com
Some medications may damage the crucial
area of the brain responsible for drive
and motivation.
Susan Kovalik, Highly Effective Teaching 2009
ALTERNATIVE TO MEDICATION:
Questions to ask regarding activity in classroom:
1. What besides seat work is presented?
2. Are there projects?
3. Class plays?
4. Variety of movement?
5. Art projects in class?
6. BEING THERE EXPERIENCES?
Susan Kovalik, Highly Effective Teaching 2009
WHAT THE FUTURE HOLDS?
A SMALLER AND SMALLER PROPORTION OF
BOYS ARE GOING TO COLLEGE-CURRENTLY
42 PERCENT ARE BOYS, 58% ARE GIRLS
Most girls will eventually earn a degree, most
boys won’t.
WHAT SCHOOLS MUST DO
 Increase projects
 Physical activities
 Major problem solving opportunities
 RECONSIDER SEAT WORK LOAD
 Offer gender specific classes

“Why Gender Matters” Dr. Leonard Sax
WE ARE THE ONLY SPECIES
THAT CREATE THE
CONDITIONS THAT CREATES
WHO WE BECOME.
Susan Kovalik, Highly Effective Teaching 2009
RESOURCES
Why Gender Matters by Leonard Sax, Ph.D.
Boys Adrift by Leonard Sax, Ph.D.
Boys and Girls Learn Differently and The Minds of Boys by Michael Gurian
and Kathy Stevens
by Michael Gurian
Real Boys by William Pollack
Reviving Ophelia by Mary Pipher, Ph.D.
A DAY IN THE LIFE OF A STUDENT
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Every Hour Of The Day
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