Chapter 2: Today's Students

Gender and Students
In their text book “The Joy of Teaching”, Gene Hall, Linda Quinn, and Donna Gollnick, explain the difference between sex and gender as they relate to the education of students. The biological characteristics that make individuals male or female are described using the term sex, but gender is the social aspects associated with it as they relate to behavior, cultural expectations, and psychological qualities. Males and females are not found to be different in overall intelligence even though there are differences in the use of hemispheres of the brain to perform certain tasks. It is stated that boys are more “deductive”, while girls are more “inductive” in their thinking (68). Culture also encourages individuals to take on certain roles based on their sex. The authors encourage teachers to be support and provide for all of their students learning regardless of their gender characteristics.