Bias in our Classrooms: Girls and Boys become Women and Men

Education is certainly one field where women are very active in leadership. However, research consistently shows that there still remains a common theme of gender bias within classrooms (taught by both women and men teachers).

This inherent bias continues to challenge so many of us as educators, who often have deeply-held values regarding equality of access and academic success for all learners, regardless of gender, ethnicity, socio-economic status, and other factors. Yet, despite these values, the experiences of students too often reflect an unconscious bias.

Einarsson and Granstrom (2010) who studied the interactions between students and their teachers through classroom observations, found a substantial difference in the attention given to students by their teachers.

“The classroom observations revealed that boys, in general, are given more attention than girls. However, male teachers increase the attention paid to girls when the pupils get older, while female teachers always give more attention to boys.” (Einarsson & Granstrom, 2010)

As an educator and leader within higher education, I believe that what happens in the university (or college) can change the world. Individual lives are shaped by education; families, companies, communities and nations are shaped by individuals. Therefore, what happens in our educational environments is critical to our future.

So what does this type of bias within our educational settings mean for our future families and companies and communities and nations? What does it mean for the children who experience this bias? And what does it mean for us as educators?

As Allyson Jule writes in her book, “Gender, participation and silence in the language classroom: Sh-shushing the girls” (2004):

“The classroom is a microcosm of society. Who counts here and why? The shushing of the girls is a complicated thing. We can’t solve it, but our awareness can make a great deal of difference here and this can affect the way we manage gender. If we as parents really see that gender is a big ‘card’ to play, and if we understand some of the ways it limits as well as propels people, then we can articulate this better to our children.” (Jule, 2004)

Because education plays such a critical role in opening opportunities for students, both today and in the future, our thinking about fundamental bias in teaching is a critical component of reflective teaching. Beginning with an awareness of how we, as educators, support students voices within the classroom is a start. For those of us who also hold leadership positions, we must also be reflective about creating spaces for the voices of others within our organizations, regardless of gender (or other factors).

Einarsson, C. & Granstrom, K. (2010). Gender-biased interaction in the classroom: The influence of gender and age in the relationship between teacher and pupil. Scandinavian Journal of Educational Research. (46)2, pp. 117-127.

Julé, A. (2004). Gender, participation and silence in the language classroom: Sh-shushing the girls. Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire: Palgrave Macmillan.