Connor Meyers
Dr. Beddow-Schubert
EFRT 308
25 October 2013
How Have My Experiences shape my future teaching?
I had looked at two articles for my research, and those were both The
Miseducation of Boys, by Myra Sadker and David Sadker, and Gender, Beliefs, and
Cognition: Gender Backwash on Iranian EFT Teachers’ and Students’ Appraisals, by Ali
Rahimi et al. It is apparent from both these articles, and from my experience with
observing 8th graders, that students are not treated the same regardless of whether
they are male or female. I will use the knowledge I’ve gained from these two articles
in order to better teach both genders equally.
In the future, I hope to teach English literature and composition classes at the
secondary level, so it was appropriate that the aforementioned article, Gender,
Beliefs, and Cognition: Gender Backwash on Iranian EFT Teachers’ and Students’
Appraisals, by Rahimi et al., was used as the basis of my research for my studies into
student gender differences. This article focused on two surveys given out to both
teachers and students involved in two groups: 26 teachers from 4 universities in
Iran, and 219 students over attending the University of Kashan (in Iran), who were
majoring in either English literature or in English translation studies. The surveys
measured both students’ and teachers’ opinions about whether and in what way
gender inequality was being carried out in the classroom. I was concerned with the
questions being asked, such as a question given out to students, asking if teachers
showed gender preference at towards students. As it turns out, 38.5 percent of
students thought that teachers show preference towards gender, 62.1 percent of
students state that teachers show a preference to the opposite gender, and 44
percent (almost half) of students think they have been discriminated against due to
gender. Although any data that asks student’s thoughts on their teachers may yield
to be inaccurate, it is important to note that if such a large percentage may be taking
offense by their teachers, there is clearly a need for teachers to consider that they
may not be treating students fairly. Taking a look at this article makes it clear that
discrimination may be taking place without the teacher’s knowledge, and may, in
fact, be built into the culture (as this study was not conducted in the United States).
Contrasting with that idea is the fact that 69.3 percent of the teachers interviewed
thought that students were being treated in a gender-inclusive manner, there is
clearly a disconnect between how the teachers thought they were treating the
students, and how students perceive the gender-biased methods taught by their
teachers.
Upon reading the Miseducation of Boys article, by Myra Sadker and David
Sadker, which explains that male students are given the majority of the teacher’s attention
in school, due to their acting out with aggressive behavior, even though girls are typically
the students who have better grades. Say Sadker and Sadker, “[t]eachers say males are
brighter, better at Science and math, and more likely to become the nation's future
leaders. “ However, one of the other important quotes of the article continues, “When
teachers remember their worst students-the discipline problems, the ones most likely to
create a classroom disturbance or to flunk out of school-they still list
boys.” This is more in tune with the experience I’ve had with my observation of teaching
methods in the middle school, and it implies that males are given an unfair advantage in
the classroom regardless of their performance. History has traditionally allowed for men
to dominate the academic life, regardless of performance, and I hope to change that when
I become a teacher. Females have various hurdles to overcome, and may not try to
compete for the teachers’ attention. I believe that it will be my responsibility, and the
responsibility of all teachers, to assume that all students should be given equal attention
by the teacher, and more often positive than negative in order to encourage students to
work their hardest.
In the past, I have done my field experience at the eighth grade level, in middle
school. This age is perfect for observing gender inequality because most students at that
point would be defined as adolescents, and have started experiencing the differences
between being male and female. I have definitely noticed the treatment of students as
those in the Miseducation of Boys article, specifically dealing with the fact that boys
would usually be treated as less attentive. Sadker and Sadker mention in their article that
boys, “[r]aised to be active, aggressive, and independent, […] enter schools that seem to
want them to be quiet, passive, and conforming.” Strangely enough, this contrasts with
my experiences at the middle-school level. Many of the males in the classroom would
typically keep to themselves unless called on, almost as if trying to act as if they weren’t
trying to work too hard; on the other hand, females were the ones chosen by the teacher
to answer questions, and the female students were more willing to contribute to the class
discussions. It’s interesting to note that many of the males in this group were also those
scolded the most by the teachers. If male students are not given positive attention, and are
scolded by the teacher more frequently, as in my field experience, it’s possible that this
may lead to an even worse situation than one where male students are given attention for
acting more aggressively. This may act as something of a self-fulfilling prophecy, then: if
male students act like they aren’t trying to do work, and are often given discouraging
remarks that they are not doing well in school, the students may start to assume that they
aren’t smart enough to continue with school, and may end up falling to the bottom of the
class. Girls, on the other hand, were given encouraging remarks in my field experience,
such as, “thank you for coming prepared to class.” I can’t be certain how this English
teacher was able to keep the students under control, but I know that if I’m able to teach in
the classroom someday, I have to make sure that I don’t allow either male or female
students to be given more attention than the opposite gender.
Although it is not always possible to give students an equal amount of attention, it
seems to be the case that teachers would benefit from the understanding that students are
often treated unfairly based on their gender, and that it is the responsibility of the teacher
to ensure that students are positively reinforced to do their best in school. I have come to
this realization based on these two articles and my experience in the field, and it is
through these that I hope this conversation continues.
Works Cited
Rahimi, A., Fallahi, A., & Samigorganroodi, G. (2013). Gender, Beliefs, and
Cognition: Gender Backwash on Iranian EFL Teachers' and Students'
Appraisals. International Journal Of Social Sciences & Education, 3(3),
706-716.