Brianna Pellizzari

EDUC 326
C. Mamchur
24 July 2016

Assignment 3: Observation on Gender Equality in the

Classroom
Setting
The setting for this assignment was a grade 4 classroom at my elementary school
in Williams Lake, BC. I chose this setting because it was easily accessible and because I
already had a rapport with the class so it was easy to sit back and observe for the
afternoon. This class has a total of 24 students with 18 of them being boys and 6 being
girls. The afternoon I chose to observe was a Social Studies lesson in which students
were participating in a class discussion and then small group work.
Instrument of Measurement
For this assignment the measurement tool I used anecdotal notes to record my
observations. I created a T-chart with girls on one side and boys on the other and when
the teacher asked a question I would mark which gender of student was chosen to answer
and I recorded their names so I would know how many times students put up their hands.
I also created T-charts for who received assistance, who called out, and who was on task.
While recording this information I also recorded the name of each student so I would
know how many times specific students did specific tasks.
Questions

Who is answering the questions the teacher asks?

I found that an equal number of boys and girls asked questions in class but that
the students who were answering questions were mainly the same 4-6 students.
Whom does the teacher call upon?
The teacher mainly calls on the people who volunteer to answer questions.
Occasionally she called on a student who she saw was a bit more quiet or who she
knew would have the answer regardless of volunteering themselves to answer.
Whom does the teacher talk with?
During the class discussion the students were in their desks and the teacher stood
at the front of the class. I found she was really good at making eye contact with
most students and keeping their attention focused on the task at hand. In the small
group activity the teacher was really good at circulating within the classroom to
talk to varying groups of students.
Which students ask questions?
During the class discussion the majority of students contributed in small pieces
but the majority of the discussion took place between the teacher and

approximately 6 key students who were the quickest to offer answers or ideas.
Which students receive individual assistance?
The students that received individual assistance in this lesson were the students
who were already flagged by the teacher as needing extra assistance.
Which students "call out"?
During the discussion there was very little calling out by the majority of the class.
One student in particular had several instances where he called out instead of
raising his hand. From my observations it was clear that this was a common
situation for this student and the teacher quickly dealt it with either verbally or
non-verbally.
Which students are more off task?
Students were off track during this lesson included mostly boys. There was one
group in particular sitting in close proximity that seemed to be more engaged with
their desk materials than on the actual discussion.
Which students are more on task?
The students that were more on task during this lesson seemed to be the ones who
were more socially outgoing than others. They seemed very confident in their
speaking abilities and social skills. They were quick to think about the questions
and topic of the discussion and to give answers or ideas.
Reflection
In my school experiences I feel that I experienced a bit of gender bias. I feel that
as a woman, girls are expected to be a bit more calm and quiet and in turn are relied upon
more to answer questions and take part in discussions. In school I was always eager to
answer questions and participate but as school went on and the curriculum got harder I
became more insecure in answering questions because I wanted to make sure that I was
right before raising my hand to answer. As I got older in high school and university I
began to feel the gender bias in certain subjects where it was thought that men succeeded
more than women. I think that the gender bias is getting smaller but that it is still present
in most schooling and work situations.
During my classroom observation it was interesting to see that more boys called
out than girls but that an equal number of boys and girls raised their hands frequently to
answer questions. It was also interesting to see that those were mainly the same students.
I think that this is a matter of quickness and confidence in both student skills and abilities
within the subject matter. Many students are self-conscious of answering questions
because of the fear of being wrong.
In order to keep bridging current and future gender biases I feel that we need to
make classroom environments a more open and accepting place so that every student can
feel comfortable and confident in participating in a wide range of classroom activities.