Sunday, September 21, 2008
Peer reactions to single gender grouping
Friday, Sept. 19, our staff was encouraged to collaborate with fellow teachers on areas of interest that are different than our daily struggles and conversations. I worked with two other teachers (7th grade) who are also doing homogeneous gender grouping during our tutorial sessions. I asked if they were seeing any differences, the reactions were both surprising and- with hindsight very acute- not so surprising. The more veteran teacher was working with female students-reading a chapter book the girls found engaging from the first page. Although not fully convinced of the future benefits, the teacher was positive and motivated to continue. The second teacher, who has not taught for too long, but is innovative, smart and very caring, wasn't having as much success. She found it difficult to keep her boys engaged and they weren't pushing themselves at all. When I shared that I have had more success when I concentrate on building relationships with the students, she responded that when she did that, they felt she was their "friend" and showed no respect. I understand her dilemma- she is small, cute and 25, they are 12-13... I explained that I didn't try to befriend them, but to show interest in their ideas, and interests by designing lessons that focus on what they like- if they like soccer, we use that as a setting for their writing, etc. I found that my assumptions were very broad in how teachers conceptualize what you discuss. I am thankful to her, not only for her willingness to give it another try, but in helping me understand where I need to be more specific- this should help with the writing for my action research. She is going to take a math concept they will be using, and having the boys write a story that teaches the concept to 5th graders. By personalizing the content for each student's work by the individual stories they write, and by giving a clear purpose and audience for their work, she may find more success. I am interested in how this develops!
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6 comments:
I keep meaning to mention to you a group called the Guerrilla Girls. Google them, they have some interesting thoughts and ideas on their website. They don't directly relate to your topic, but are all about girl power and may be something interesting to you. Just a thought =)
I'm curious to see what you uncover with gender grouping. Over the years, I tend to group my tables by gender. I have found that there is a similarity in how their brains are wired. This has always been interesting to me, as girls tend to take a "back seat" to the boys in science. Looking forward to more.
I have all kinds of "Girls Can Do Anything" signs and bumper stickers in my classroom. I think this is a great ARP. It is something that I would have liked to do but then I switched. Good luck. The girls sound awesome.
Small, cute and 25? I'd like to meet this colleague of yours for further discussion on the subject, dear Susan! Perhaps you could set up an appointment? (just to be clear, I am joking)
Girls do rock! Have you found if their classroom performance or attitudes change when they switch from your co-ed class, to the homogeneous grouping of the tutorial groups?
On another note, establishing great relationships with our students really does make a difference. Befriending them isn't necessarily a bad thing. How will we ever get to know them if we don't befriend them? Clear lines of respect should be defined though.
I think one of the major [problems with befriending is that students often overstep their boundaries and teachers too sometimes. I am glad that she is willing to give it another try. I have found that allowing my students to work in homogeneous gender groups helps my student to stay on task. There are fewer distractions and students seem to stay on task better.
I think there is a professional distinction between befriending and supporting. Teachers tend to support, not befriend. We can be helpful and supportive to our students; we can show genuine concern and support, but I'm thinking that's where it ends. Sounds like Susan has a great rapport with her students. I'd love to be a middle school student in her class...
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