Gender Bias in Schools

Introduction

Gender bias in school is an extremely controversial topic in the United States.  On the surface gender bias seems simple; treating boys and girls differently (Owens, Smothers, & Love, 2003).  However there is much more involved, in fact some would argue that gender bias does not even exist.  Gender bias takes on many forms: sexism, which is subtle and unconscious (Owens, Smothers, & Love, 2003); bias in instructional materials, which includes exclusion, stereotyping, imbalance, unreality, isolation, and linguistic bias (Rousso & Wehmeyer, 2001); favoritism in the classroom; not offering equal opportunities; and perpetuating stereotypes, this is done by pushing students into typical gender life paths.  Progress has been made since the 1970’s when the issue was first brought into limelight: there have been several things that have helped with the progress that has been made, these include; influence of society, laws, proposed answers, and the education of teachers.  Although the above mentioned factors have helped to improve the progress of gender bias some may have actually hindered the progress of one or both sexes.  The majority of gender bias known is against women, but there is also gender bias against men. 

Factors

There are a few factors that influence and help to perpetuate gender bias in schools.  It has been proven in several studies that social class is a large factor that affects academic achievement (Francis, 2000).  Social class may affect academic achievement in several ways. This may mean that the children are in better schools because of their physical location (they can afford to live in areas with better educational systems or they go to a private school that stresses academics) or they may receive more attention due to the social class they are perceived as being (teachers may show favoritism toward the upper or middle class students.) One other factor that is most often blamed for women lagging behind in an academic setting is the portion of time that teachers spend with male students with female students, which is often much greater (Francis, 2000).

Progress

Since the issue of gender bias in school was brought to the forefront in the United States by feminist’s movement groups, who believed that girls were greatly ignored and pushed aside, there has been some improvement made toward making a level playing field. As far back as Colonial times, gender bias against women has existed, at this time girls were altogether denied an education.  Progress was made, and in 1776 some girls were permitted to be educated in reading and writing.  This was made extremely difficult by the inconvenient evening hours, fees for the classes, and the fact that teachers were not in the profession to teach, but were in taking on women’s classes purely for monetary gain.  During the 19^th century women were permitted in public schools, but mostly in separate school buildings or at least separate floors or classrooms. More progress was made when the feminist movement brought female education to the attention of the American public and Title IX was passed in 1972 (Owens, Smothers, & Love, 2003).  With all of the publicity during the 1970’s and 1980’s that was meant to persuade the public to believe that women were the victims, there were some statistics that said men were also being discriminated against.  The facts that were shown to the American public were that girls were victims of discrimination from male classmates, teachers and the school systems, girls were “marginalized and belittled in the classroom,” girls were pushed in to arts and not math or science courses (which leads to higher paying jobs in the future), and that boys receive more contact with teachers and school staff (Francis, 2000)(Rousso & Wehmeyer, 2001).  With all of the information provided, what was not said is that although boys did receive more attention, it was mostly for disruptive behavior and that the contact females had with school staff was usually more positive and meaningful to their education (Rousso & Wehmeyer, 2001).  There is no doubt that gender bias did exist, but at the time laws did not exist, the mentality of the country was that women were to be housewives, and the text that teachers were using in the classroom was very bias against women.  One study on a text that was being used during the 1970’s and 1980’s showed gender stereotypes that include: men as being active and independent, and women as following men, being rescued, and in homemaking positions (Rousso & Wehmeyer, 2001).  All of this blatant gender bias has been gradually decreasing, during the 1990’s girls were still receiving less of the teachers attention (but time spent with boys was more often for discipline), sexism is down, yet omission, stereotypes, and tokenism are still frequent, and there are still more photos of women in stereotypical gender roles (Rousso & Wehmeyer, 2001).  Here are a few facts that show the progress women have made since the 1970’s:

• From 1992 to 1995 college women athletes has risen from 15% to 37%
• From 1971 to 1996 High School women athletes have risen from 7.5% to 39%
• From 1971 to 1994 college enrollment of women as risen from 43% to 63%
• From 1971 to 1994 bachelor degrees for women have risen from 18% to 27%
• From 1972 to 1994 medical degrees for women have risen from 9% to 38%
• From 1972 to 1994 law degrees for women have risen from 7% to 43%
• From 1972 to 1994 doctoral degrees for women have risen from 25% to 44%

(Owens, Smothers, & Love, 2003) More recently during the late 1990’s an effort has been made to raise awareness about discrimination, but the efforts have proven to be of little use as they were poorly organized and varied in forms from area to area, with some regions of the country not even being aware of the efforts(Francis, 2000).  There has also been a movement by the United States Government and the states Department of Education to place homework clubs in after school football clubs, the problem is that this once again alienates anyone who does not participate in such activities (Francis, 2000).  I personally know of one school in northeastern Pennsylvania at which some coaches will not let students to participate in sports without first having sat down and done their homework.  I am also familiar with another school that requires all athletes to maintain a GPA of 3.0 or higher, this is checked twice a week by the school authorities and reported to the coaches.  If you do not maintain that GPA then you are not allowed to participate until it is corrected, in this case many coaches make it mandatory for the students to sit at practice and complete the work required by their teachers. 

Laws

Much of the above mentioned progress is in part due to the feminist’s movements that resulted in major laws.  The law that has had a large impact on progress seen in gender bias is Title IX.  Title IX states “no person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subject to discrimination under any educational programs or activity receiving federal assistance (Owens, Smothers, & Love, 2003).” To put this law in plain English Title IX outlaws sex discrimination by schools who receive federal funds (Simpson, 1996). There are however a few exemptions to the law, which are: contact sports, sexual education classes, and choruses.  The progress that we have seen from Title IX is better athletic programs and less bias in text books used (Owens, Smothers, & Love, 2003).  There have been some problems with Title IX as it was not taken seriously, since the inception of Title IX, Vocation Education classes were still segregated, and pregnancy was a major reason for girls to be expelled, but not for the teen fathers. From the beginning of Title IX in 1972 until 1991 were not held liable for a violation nor was there any loss of funding.  This took until 1992 for the first school to be held responsible for a Title IX violation (Owens, Smothers, & Love, 2003).

Education of Teachers

When it comes down to the facts, teachers spend as much, if not more time with our children than do their parents.  This is all the more reason for teachers to be properly educated about gender bias and other issues that can, and do affect our children.  Making our teachers better equipped to deal with equalizing gender bias begins in their education.  Since the 1980’s progress has been made, but the problems are not solved during the course of their education, teachers rarely encounter equality training (Owens, Smothers, & Love, 2003).   Teachers cannot change or help prevent the problem if they are not aware of it.  In a study of teacher education text books 3 of 4 authors are male, most of which are white (Zittleman & Sadker, 2002). Text books have the potential to decrease gender bias, but are not written in such a manner that they will (Zittleman & Sadker, 2002).  In fact in teacher education textbooks there is: no attention to gender segregation; only approximately 3% of their content dedicated to sexism and gender bias; and most text offers absolutely no coverage of gender bias (Zittleman & Sadker, 2002).  During college most teachers encounter a course about education philosophy, in this class on average 37 males are discussed and one female is mentioned in a side box and in most education textbooks male researchers are cited twice as often as female researchers (Zittleman & Sadker, 2002).  Of college professors who teach education 90% are aware of gender equality but spend an average of 2 hours a semester devoted to teaching the topic (Zittleman & Sadker, 2002).  Teachers are also not taught about sexual harassment as the topic is omitted from the text (Zittleman & Sadker, 2002).  With all of the above facts, coupled with the fact that gender equality in schools is a law, why is the government not stepping in to help? The answer to that question is that government programs to educate teachers have had almost the entire funding cut.  Our teachers are also not given any resources to show them how to reduce or change sexism and current textbooks do not prepare teachers to deal with hallway harassment, stereotypes, imbalance in staffing, and other pressing issues (Zittleman & Sadker, 2002). 

Social Influence

Social influence has a great deal to do with gender bias. We as a society are taught from the beginning of our lives that boys and girls are different, this is subtle and almost never said, just perpetuated in subtle every day activities such as: how parents hold a girl versus a boy; the different toys, books, television, and activities we are exposed to; and the different encouragement we receive as to what activities we should participate in (Owens, Smothers, & Love, 2003).  Girls tend to focus on physical appearance as opposed to other activities, girls are exposed to a culture that pushes them toward this thinking, and they see a society in which 23% of models are below normal weight (Owens, Smothers, & Love, 2003).  Girls being exposed to a society focused on looks alone lead to a general mentality among teens that intelligence conflicts with popularity (Owens, Smothers, & Love, 2003). We can see that a girl being concerned about weight has become a problem at the high school level where it was once an unknown. In high schools today eating disorders have become common and 66% of high school aged girls admit to “dieting” (Owens, Smothers, & Love, 2003). With all of their time focused on being of the right physical stature, girls tend to not concentrate on academics. This is just one way in which society has hindered the education system in providing an environment free of gender bias and sexism. 

Stereotypes

The perpetuation of stereotypes is another way in which the education system is hindered.  Society has in the past reinforced gender role stereotypes leading to girls and boys to not perform to their full potential (Zittleman & Sadker, 2002). Since the 1970’s society has continued to over-socialize girls to conform to stereotypical definitions of femininity (Owens, Smothers, & Love, 2003). This push society puts on girls to take “appropriate” gender roles also leads to lower pay: traditionally female jobs; cosmetology pays $8.49/hour and child care pays $7.43/hour; traditionally male jobs; plumber, electrician, and mechanical drafter pay $20/hour or more (“Nation’s high,” 2002).  One study even found that 100% of plumbing students were male, this shows how unbalanced our education system is (“Nation’s high,” 2002).  

Single-sex Schools

There are many people who favor and who are against single-sex school or classrooms.  Those who favor single-sex classes or schools say that girls perform better in this type of situation (Simpson, 1996).Supporters argue that separation of sexes allows for educators to focus more on specific learning styles for each sex.  (Simpson, 1996). Supporters seem to find boys are aggressive and belittle girls who do speak in class or try to participate (Simpson, 1996). Those who are against single-sex classrooms or schools say that this type of segregation is demeaning (Simpson, 1996). People who oppose single-sex schools say that by separating the sexes girls are put in a cage or that this conveys the message of girls being unequal (Simpson, 1996). In a study of schools who offered single-sex classes, one school reported enrollment in advanced math and science classes tripled and grades greatly increased (Simpson, 1996).  All of this leads me to the conclusion that there is no right answer. 

Answer

There is not correct answer but below I will explain some solutions that could help to improve the status of gender bias in the United States today.  Research has shown that single- sex schools are not the answer to solving all gender bias in the world, but when used properly could help.  For example the above mentioned single-sex classrooms; as this has improved the learning of some students it should be offered or teachers should offer single-sex small group work for some but not all assignments (Francis, 2000).  While implementing any sort of single-sex program, schools and administrators should also continue to encourage all students to speculate and ask questions, as this is an important part of education (Francis, 2000).  Teachers do need to understand learning styles are different from child to child, but a large influence on this is sex and that teachers generally gear their lessons toward the learning styles of boys (Simpson, 1996).  Educators also need to become more attentive to ridicule that girls often receive from boys for participation in class work or discussion and need to discipline this type of behavior; this will send the message that this behavior is not tolerated (Simpson, 1996).  Society needs to become more aware of the areas that need changing: gender-balanced text books, gender-fair teaching, time, and support (from administration, parents, and society)(Owens, Smothers, & Love, 2003). Schools and parents need to begin early to provide student’s information about future careers and what they will need to do to prepare throughout their school career; this should begin as early as elementary school (Owens, Smothers, & Love, 2003).  The following are a list of techniques teachers should consider in order to help reduce gender bias:

• Point out when a text has included only one view on a topic
• Note copyright dates and inform students of the authors background
• Ask students to explain alternative perspective
• Note and discuss how observance dates began (example: African American History Month)
• Note when limiting words are used (policeman or fireman)
• Discuss the effects of self image and encourage students to improve theirs
• Note when inconsistencies are used in descriptions (strong male athlete or cute female athlete)
• Promote questions and hands on learning
• Expose all students to a wide range of career options
• Bring attention to future courses that will be needed to achieve future career goals
• Counter negative attitudes
• Educate other staff
• Assume interest
• Assume talent
• Assume participation
• Assume that “all students” includes everyone, but not all students are not the same
• Make learning accessible
• Educate yourself
• Bring attention to stereotyping
• Teach about people who broke stereotypes
• Call attention to underrepresentation of groups

(Rousso & Wehmeyer, 2001)

Conclusion

To conclude about gender bias in education there are many reasons that this is present, much progress has been made, a few laws have been passed that have helped, poor education of teachers, stereotypes, and there are many ways we can combat this as educators and a society.  Is I have researched this topic I find that the single most important change that can be made is better education of teachers and society, as many do not even know that this exists.  Gender bias is present for males as well as females, but is much greater for females.  The fight for equality is far from over, but there has been some progress.  The final point I would like to make is that gender bias is real.

References

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