Single Gender EducationProfessional Development Day

Friday November 13, 2009

BCHS

Our job is to teach the kids we have.

Not the ones we would like to have.

Those we have right now…all of them! -Anonymous

Woodbridge Middle School, CNN

Grade 7 Students Achieving 70% and Above in Writing in Term 3

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2005-06 2006-07 2007-08 2008-09

Female Male Linear (Female) Linear (Male)

Grade 7 Students Achieving 70% and Above in Reading in Term 3

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2005-06 2006-07 2007-08 2008-09

F em ale M ale L in ear (F em ale) L in ear (M ale)

Grade 8 Students Achieving 70% and Above in Writing in Term 3

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60

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100

2005-06 2006-07 2007-08 2008-09

Female Male Linear (Female) Linear (Male)

Grade 8 Students Achieving 70% and above in Reading Term 3 2008/09

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2005-06 2006-07 2007-08 2008-09

Female Male Linear (Female) Linear (Male)

Grade 9 Academic/Applied English Achievement-Females

62%

53%

Grade 7 Students Achieving 70% and Above in Math Strands in Term 3 of 2008/09

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N S & N M G & S S P & A D M & P

Female Male Linear (Female) Linear (Male)

Grade 8 Students Achieving 70% and above in Math Term 3 2008/09

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40

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N S & N M G & S S P & A D M & P

Female Male Linear (Female) Linear (Male)

Grade 9 Academic/Applied Math Achievement-Females

40%

58%

Grade 9 Academic/Applied English Achievement-Males

43%

46%

BCHS-Grade 9 EQAO Student Questionnaire 2008-2009Apllied Academic

F M F M

I like Mathematics 32% 62% 55% 73%

I am good at Mathematics 21% 56% 55% 63%

58% 88% 78% 87%

Mathematics is an easy subject. 26% 50% 24% 44%

47% 38% 25% 13%

Number Sense 32% 50% 67% 69%

Algebra 47% 56% 65% 62%

Linear Relations 47% 81% 71% 62%

analytical Geometry 43% 60%

Measurment 58% 81% 69% 83%

Geometry 26% 69% 49 54%

I understand most of the math I am taught.

Absent from Math classes 5 times or more

Percent of Students that find the strands very easy/easy

Single Gender Education Separating boys and

girls into separate classrooms for instruction purposes to meet a specific educational objective.

Girls and Boys learn the SAME key learning's but may learn through different activities or topics to a lesson.

Gendered Instruction is Differentiated Instruction

Single gender classrooms is not the answer to all problems….but it create opportunities!

Teachers need to be aware of the differences….and teach accordingly.

A Student’s learning style, intelligence preference, gender, and culture can influence his/her learning profile.

(Tomlinson, How to Differentiate Instruction in Mixed Ability Classrooms, 2001)

Differentiation by Gender

Gender also influences how we learn. The goal of the teacher is…to create a classroom flexible enough to invite individuals to work in ways they find most productive.

(Tomlinson, How to Differentiate Instruction in Mixed Ability Classrooms, 2001)

Gendered Instruction is Brain Based Learning Structural Differences Developmental Differences Performance Differences ….between male

and female brains. (Sousa, D., How the Brains Works, 2006)

…social and biological differences between mend and women exist and they impact learning. (Jensen, E., Brain Based Learning, 2000)

Six Possible Gender DifferencesDavid Chadwell-WV

Seeing Hearing Engaging Processing Responding Choosing

Based on averages Boys are not all-boy

and girls are not all girls

Knowing the learner.

Do not use to limit students

Plasticity of the Brain

Plasticity, or neuroplasticity, is the lifelong ability of the brain to reorganize neural pathways based on new experiences.

Performance is changeable and not carved in stone

Seeing the World Boys tend to focus more on

the motion of the objects, the location and movement. They may be more drawn to cool colours (silver, blue, black and grey). They tend to be inventive with how things work and fit together.

Girls tend to focus on the description and details of objects. They may be more drawn to warm colours (red,yellow, green, orange)

Think about the students you teach. Who comes to mind as an example of

this information?

Seeing the World One finds that most men and boys are better able to spot

movement than are girls and women. The Essential Difference, page 76

Men see better in brighter light; while women's eye site is superior at night.

– Females are more sensitive to the red end of the spectrum – Females excel at visual memory– Females are superior at interpreting facial clues and

context– Females are able to store more random and irrelevant

visual information than men.

– Brain Based Learning, Pg 95 Think about the students you teach. Who comes to mind as an example of

this information?

Hearing the World

Boys tend not to hear well as girls, particularly at 1000-4000 Hz range. There is rarely a time when something is too loud.

Girls tend to hear better and more sensitive to sound. They can interpret loud or deep voices as “yelling” at them…and that you are mad at them.

Think about the students you teach. Who comes to mind as an example of this information?

Engaging the World

Who comes to mind as opposite examples of this information?

Engagement of girls tends to be more influenced by the parasympathetic nervous system…”Tend and Befriend” response…decrease heart rate and brain function.

Yet for many readers, and particularly boys, the attraction of sustained silent reading is baffling. Nonreaders see it as a form of isolation that runs counter to every social instinct they posses.

Newkirk, Thomas, Misreading Masculinity, 2002

Engagement of boys tends to be more influenced by the sympathetic nervous system… “Fight or Flight” response…increase heart rate & brain function

Processing the World

Think about the students you teach. Who comes to mind as an example of this information?

Boys tend to process events and information in an either/or perspective. Processing of emotional events tends to be processed in the amygdala

Girls tend to process events and information in analytical and emotional aspects considering differing perspectives. Maturity of cerebral connections seems to earlier than boys. This occurs in the cerebral cortex.

The Female brain is predominately hard-wired for empathy. The male brain is predominately hard wired for understanding and building systems.

Baron-Cohen, Simon, The Essential Difference, 2003

Responding to the World

Think about the students you teach. Who comes to mind as an example of

this information?

Stress that enhances learning in most boys has a dramatic opposite effect in most girls.

i.e. Acute Stress decreases cognitive abilities in most girls

Boys and Girls respond to stress differentlyFor girls, acute stress tends to decrease the blood flow to the brain. Remember, parasympathetic.

For boys, acute stress tends to increase the blood flow to the brain, helps him remain alert and focused. Remember sympathetic.

Making Choices in the World

Think about the students you teach. Who comes to mind as an example of

this information?

Girls tend not to like risks and tend to underestimate their abilities. Believe success is from hard work. Ambiguity is seen as unsafe. Oxytocin is released in risk taking situations. If they get hurt, these girls seek out friends to talk about their feelings and get positive feed back.

Boys enjoy taking risks and they tend overestimate their abilities. Believe success is from being smart. Ambiguity is a game/challenge. Testosterone is released in males in risk taking situations.

Other Inputs to LearningCultural

Community

Socio-Economic Status

Previous Experience

Gender does not replace these components, but can be a part of the considerations when working with students.

Gender-Based StrategiesStrategies are a guide, a set of ideas that are based on classroom experience and adaptation research.

There is NO curriculum for ‘boys’ or for ‘girls’

There is NO strategy or lesson plan that is ‘boy-only’ or ‘girls-only’.

Using gender differences is Differentiated Instruction

A strategy that tends to be good for boys does NOT mean it is bad for girls

A strategy that tends to be good for girls does NOT mean it is bad for boys

Gender-Based Strategies-Boys(Doesn’t mean they aren’t good for girls)

. Verbal Cues…”All Set”…”Marco..Polo” etc

Allows standing when taking notes.

Ball toss Discussions.Use rapid fire when

asking questions.

Break activities into timed segments.

Discuss issues side-by-side. Not f2f.

Have boys make predictions on events, answers, solutions. Don’t say “Study”,

Tell them how you want them to study.

Incorporate choices within lessons and assignments.

Avoid “How you feel?” questions, rather “What would you do?”

Social Studies…begin lessons with action…a battle or natural disaster etc.

Mathematics…rapid fire, crunching numbers.

Addressing them by their last names.

Establish authority, sending boys to office only at last resort.

Don’t sit, walk around through out the class.

No personal questions until authority is established.

Boys prefer cool rooms approx 69 degrees.

Boys prefer cool lit rooms (approx 400k).

Use good visuals to reinforce auditory presentations.

Provide additional wait time/think time to process information,especially when presented auditorialy.

Accept aggression or transgression responses as along they are in bounds.

Provide frequent talk breaks to foster processing.

Keep in mind many boys need extra time for task completion.

Gender-Based Strategies-Girls(Doesn’t mean they aren’t good for boys)

Assign seats and change every week

Assign Groups…don't let them choose as it promotes cliques. Work through f2f

communications, sit listen and smile. Agree and sympathize.Celebrate questions and

mistakes as a form of learning.

Use a signal for getting their attention.

Answer questions with questions.

Have girls share their experiences, stories, opinion relating to a central concept. Prefer warmer

rooms-approx 75 degrees.

Prefer warm lit rooms (300k).

Incorporate ‘Choice’ within lessons and assignments.

Social Studies…Start with ‘How would you feel if…?’, Avoid long stories about dead males.

Mathematics…, start something that you can touch…real world applications.

Prefer a less noisy classroom.

Over train females to deal with acute stress.

No favourites!Science… don’t like plugging in numbers into formulas, rather relevance of formula.

Motivate by showing that you care for them as a person.

Woodbridge Middle

Single Gender Education

You must adjust your teaching to meet this structural change

Single gender classrooms is not the answer to all problems….but it create opportunities!

Single gender classrooms is a STRUCTURAL change, NOT a teaching strategy.

Thank-you!