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Why Gender Matters: What Parents and Teachers Need to Know about the Emerging Science of
Sex Differences by Leonard Sax
Alexandra Esser
Saint Marys University of Minnesota
Schools of Graduate and Professional Programs
Portfolio Entry for Wisconsin Teacher Standards 2 and 5
Independent Book Study
James Sauter, Advisor
June 29, 2015

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Selected Wisconsin Teacher Standard Descriptors

Wisconsin Teacher Standard (WTS) 2: Teachers know how children grow.
The teacher understands how children with broad ranges of ability learn and provides
instruction that supports their intellectual, social, and personal development.
Knowledge. The teacher understands that students physical, social, emotional, moral,
and cognitive development influence learning and knows how to address these factors when
making instructional decisions.
Dispositions. The teacher appreciates individual variation within each area of
development, shows respect for the diverse talents of all learners, and is committed to help them
develop self-confidence and competence.
Performances. The teacher assesses individual and group performance in order to
design instruction that meets learners current needs in each domain (cognitive, social, emotional,
moral, and physical) and that leads to the next level of development.

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Wisconsin Teacher Standard (WTS) 5: Teachers know how to manage a classroom.

The teacher uses an understanding of individual and group motivation and behavior to
create a learning environment that encourages positive social interaction, active engagement in
learning, and self-motivation.
Knowledge. The teacher can use knowledge about human motivation and behavior
drawn from the foundational sciences of psychology, anthropology, and sociology to develop
strategies for organizing and supporting individual and group work.
Dispositions. The teacher is committed to the continuous development of individual
students' abilities and considers how different motivational strategies are likely to encourage this
development for each student.
Performances. The teacher engages students in individual and cooperative learning
activities that help them develop the motivation to achieve, by, for example, relating lessons to
students personal interests, allowing students to have choices in their learning, and leading
students to ask questions and pursue problems that are meaningful to them.

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Book Study
The book I chose for this independent book study is Why Gender Matters: What Parents
and Teachers Need to Know about the Emerging Science of Sex Differences by Leonard Sax. I
selected this title because issues with gender have become increasingly more prevalent in society
and particularly in schools. As a teacher I feel I should be more sensitive to gender issues and
gain a better understanding for how children grow and identify themselves. Understanding the
students is the first step in effectively managing a classroom.
I chose to connect this book study to WTS 2 and 5. My goal is to better understand how
children with broad ranges of ability learn and [provide] instruction that supports their
intellectual, social, and personal development. I want to use the knowledge I gain about the
differences between the way girls and boys learn to create a learning environment that
encourages positive social interaction, active engagement in learning, and self-motivation.
Chapter I: Differences
The first chapter introduced the idea that there are innate differences between males and
females and that gendered or gender-neutral child rearing does not influence gender identity. I
had always thought that any gendered preferences were heavily socially influenced, but at the
same time believed there must be something in ones genetic make-up causing him or her to
gravitate towards male or female. In this chapter, Sax describes there to be a spectrum between
male and female upon which individuals lie rather than strictly being one or the other. If this is
the case, I am curious to see how he connects innate differences between males and females to
this spectrum of gender everyone is on.
One example on an innate difference Sax mentions is that girls have better hearing than
boys and therefore boys should be sat in the front of a classroom. As a high school teacher, I

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typically sit boys more towards the back because they are taller and the girls simply cannot see
around them; however, I often seat the boys whose attention wanders in the front rows.
A few other points in this chapter that troubled me were the increased number of teenage
girls and boys who regularly drink and abuse drugs, respectively, and the decreased number of
boys who attend college after high school. These numbers were compared to those of the said
girls and boys parents at that age. I know that many of my own students do drink underage and
it is worrisome to think of this trend increasing over time. I am interested to read what Sax has to
say about how gender issues influence drug and alcohol abuse.
Chapter II: Female brains, male brains
In this chapter the physical make-up of female and male brains are discussed and
differences in males and female brains are exemplified by how girls and boys hear, see, act, and
express their feelings differently.
Saxs discussion on how girls and boys hear differently really interested me as a world
languages teacher. A large component of my content area is verbal or aural communication and I
was surprised to see that girls really do hear differently (better) than boys. Volume is also
perceived differently in the brains of girls and boys, and this explains why girls tend to speak so
quietly in class that I sometimes do not understand them. It also explains why girls often say
their male teachers yell a lot, but boys do not notice this.
Sax noted how girls are more easily bothered by tapping fingers or quiet sounds than
boys are because boys do not hear these sounds as clearly or loudly. In my classroom I have
observed that my female students and I quickly express annoyance when male students are
clicking a pen or if the heater is squeaking across the hallway. Male students, on the other hand,
rarely express annoyances associated with noises.

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Another interesting point Sax made about how the brain make-up affects males and
females differently is how, if at all, they express their feelings. At younger ages, kids brains are
not able to make the connection between their feelings and describing why they feel this way. As
they get older, female brains develop the connection, but male brains do not. This explains why
girls will stay after class and tell me how they feel about things going on at home, but boys have
never done this. This also explains why people in my personal life are the way they are and I
realize now that I should not try to push them to talk about their feelings.
Chapter III: Risk
This chapter pointed out a number of differences I was aware of about how males and
females assess and decide to take risks. Males are hardwired to take more risks especially in
front of other males, whereas females will rarely take risks on their or in front of other females.
Sometimes it is necessary to encourage males to be more aware of the consequences of their
risks and females to take more risks. If kids do not take risks there are a couple ways they are
affected. Kids can either become helpless or not learn how to become assertive for their needs, or
they can become fearful of taking any risks at all. The way I can use this knowledge in my
classroom relates to verbal participation. I have often noticed male students are more willing to
speak in the target language (TL), German, than females are. The risk involved with speaking in
the TL is looking foolish in front of ones peers, and males clearly are not as affected by the risk
of looking foolish. Females, however, must see this as a greater risk and it would be my
responsibility as the supervising adult to encourage them to take this risk more often than not. I
also read that females are more willing to take risks when they are separated from males. It may
be worth considering splitting the class by gender for certain oral presentations or assessments as
a way to lower female students perceived risk in oral participation.

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Chapter IV: Aggression

Saxs explanation on aggression made a lot of sense especially about younger students I
have had. He explains that males should show aggression towards each other early on to prevent
potential violent acts, to build closer friendships with other males, and to channel an innate need
to express aggression physically. Females do not view aggression the same way and in fact
experience it the opposite way. They see aggression as destructive rather than constructive to a
relationship and generally have no desire to hit their friends or engage in horse-play. Just this
afternoon I witnessed a mild form of aggression in my German I class, and because I had read
this chapter on aggression, I felt comfortable letting the situation play itself out. I had twelve
girls working in groups of four on their review presentations and worksheets and four boys
throwing paper balls at the recycle bin. The girls kept looking at me to see if I would stop the
boys from playing and blocking each other, and the boys were oblivious to their stares. Normally,
I would have told them to sit down or shoot fairly and not block each other, but I instead let them
handle their own game. In the end, the girls completed their work and the boys finished their
game friendlier than when they started. I am glad I did not interfere, and I believe the boys were
happy they got rough-house a little in the classroom. Of course I am not going to encourage
aggression in my classroom, but I will be less likely to step in when something similar occurs.
Female aggression looks entirely different and has a completely different consequence
than male aggression. Females tend to stay away from physical acts of aggression and instead
use their words or passive acts of aggression to settle matters. For example, a girl may get all of
her friends to not sit with a particular girl at lunch, or refuse to talk to her. If girls do get into a
fight, it is unlikely they will ever be friends afterward. As a female, I have seen and sometimes
experienced female aggression in school, in a social setting, and in my workplace. I understand

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how seriously it can affect females and especially teenage girls, but have rarely seen those guilty
of it reprimanded. It seems that female aggression needs more attention in schools and teachers
should be more sensitive to this in their classrooms in order to prevent it. The fact that female
aggression can cause girls to have suicidal thoughts is very scary and I would hope our guidance
counselors are well-enough equipped to deal with and recognize it. I know girls are so often told
to brush these aggressions aside and that the problems are in their heads, but teenage girls are not
always strong enough to do this. I do my best to ask my female students questions unrelated to
German so they know I take an interest in them and hope they would feel comfortable talking to
me if they do become victims of female aggression.
Chapter V: School
As a female, I have only experienced school through a female students point of view. I
knew male and female students were different, but had never noticed these differences could be
so generalized. Girls tend to ask for help at the onset of a problem and boys try to figure things
out on their own and only ask a teacher for help if they cannot work through the problem. I have
noticed among some of my male colleagues that they are less willing to sit with a student and
work through something that the student does not understand or the students find them
unapproachable. With myself, I have noticed I will always make time for the students for extra
help and have been concerned when (mostly male) students do not approach me for help. It
makes sense now that the boys wait so long to ask for help and that their mothers often remind
them to ask for help in class.
Another way girls and boys should be treated differently at school is how they are
disciplined. Boys will often respond in a positive way to yelling in school, but girls will react
negatively. I wonder if girls and boys respond the same way in sports. Coaches yell at their

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players regardless if they are coaching girls or boys and it might be worth seeing if yelling less in
girls sports improves teamwork and performance. When I teach, I should not feel bad about
yelling at boys for not performing up to my expectations, nor should I think I am treating boys
and girls unfairly. Their brains are developing differently and therefore girls and boys should not
be disciplined the same way.
Girls and boys are fully capable of learning the same material, but the best practice for
teaching girls does not work for boys and vice versa. Literature assessments and lessons that
involve expressing ones feelings and connecting content to real-life applications are more
helpful for teaching girls, whereas non-fiction and action can be better for boys. The fact that
boys and girls should be taught differently seems so trivial, yet male and female teachers
continue to teach their students how their genders best learn. Naturally there are then going to be
male and female dominated subjects in schools because the way males teach physics is best for
boys, just like the way females teach English is best for girls. The first step in genderneutralizing education would be to recognize and embrace the differences in how girls and boys
learn and not shy away from teaching them differently. Designing different assessments and
lessons for both girls and boys gives girls and boys an equal chance at learning the content rather
than orienting assessments and lessons unfairly toward one gender.
Chapter VI: Sex
I was very surprised to find out how many girls under fourteen years of age are sexually
active. I was always aware that my students probably were, but I wonder if the ratio of 1 in 5
girls being sexually active represents the population at my school. Since Regis is a Catholic
school, sex is not something that is typically discussed or accepted at the school and it is hard for
me to believe that this is as much of an issue at public schools. On the other hand, another survey

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showed that parents are oblivious to their children drinking, smoking, or having sex and just
because it is not acceptable does not mean that it will prevent students from doing what they
want to. Parents and teachers should never assume they know what their students are doing when
parents and teachers are not present. The best prevention against teens having sex before they are
ready is to help teens view sex as a personal rather than impersonal act. Helping young girls to
have a positive self-imagine keeps them from looking for that reassurance in impersonal sexual
acts they almost always later regret.
Chapter VII: Drugs
The same way helping girls build up their self-esteem can lower their chances for having
sex too early can also lower girls chances for abusing drugs and slipping into depression. I have
had a number of straight-A female students who all seem to be under an incredible amount of
stress from school and their own negative self-image, and a couple of students moms have also
approached me about their daughters perfectionism. The best advice to help guard against
these girls perhaps turning to drugs or alcohol would be to help them figure out where their
strengths lie and give them a safe place to channel their perfectionism. When girls go through
with or attempt suicide, it is sad to think that it could have been prevented even if they have
really loving and well-meaning parents. Most of the girls I know who have struggled with low
self-esteem and high school-related stress are good at hiding their stress. These girls are not the
most forthcoming with their feelings unless they are asked. Once they can articulate their
feelings, it is easier to help them manage their stress and depression and healthy ways instead of
letting them self-medicate.
It was interesting to read how girls and boys respond differently to the methods adults use
to get them to stop taking drugs. Warning girls of the dangers of using drugs and encouraging

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their participation in athletics is effective for girls but not for boys. Boys respond better when
they can transfer their thrill-seeking or high risk behaviors into something else they perceive as
dangerous. In my first teaching position many students were taking drugs and drugs were a
problem in the community. Many students parents were not involved in their students lives and
either never taught their students or never themselves learned healthy ways to cope with stress or
satisfy their need for risk.
Chapter VIII: Discipline
My significant other and I often discuss and sometimes argue about the way parents
discipline or do not discipline their children. When we go to family gatherings or parties where
many children are present it is difficult to enjoy ourselves if these children are arguing with their
parents, refusing to do something and receiving no consequences, or throwing tantrums. I used to
think that these things sometimes just happen because of the way children are. As I have taught
longer and noticed more parents who are my age in public, I realize more that disrespectful
children are a direct result of poor parenting. Children are not adults and should not be given the
choice to do something their parents wish them to do. All of the cases mentioned in this chapter
show that enforced and rigid discipline from the parents prevent behavior problems with children
later on. Giving children drugs to make them behave instead of disciplining them is a guise for
inadequate parenting.
Similarly, the way girls and boys are disciplined should be fair, but not equal. Girls are
able to imagine someone elses feelings and can understand how their actions were wrong if it is
explained to them. Boys cannot do this so taking away a privilege for a given amount of time and
not giving in even if they behave is most effective. There are different discipline techniques for
boys and girls at different ages, but it is most important that parents fairly and consistently

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discipline their children. If children are given an out on a punishment, it shows them that their
punishments are negotiable, which they are not.
The idea of consistent and fair discipline at home can work similarly in the classroom. If
a girl and a boy both cheat on a test, both students will receive a consequence. Although they will
both be disciplined and written up for academic dishonesty, I will consider different approaches
when I talk to them.
Chapter IX: Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Sissy, and Tomboy
All of these issues about sexual orientation and acting or feeling like the opposite sex are
so passionately debated that it is difficult to look at these issues objectively. Anything other than
a typical and straight male or female is immediately labeled as different and people are less
accepting of those who are different. From what I understand, there is no known scientific
evidence to determine sexual orientation; however, this should not invalidate the way a person
feels toward the same or opposite sex. Helping teenage students to understand and embrace their
sexuality is in my experience rarely discussed in schools and better left to the guidance
counselors. If teachers are more equipped to handle discussions about sexual orientation or
gender issues students may be able to address their own issues earlier on when they are still in
safe environments surrounded by people who love them.
Chapter X: Beyond Pink and Blue
This chapter highlighted how our society has created more gender issues in children than
previously through gender-neutralizing schools, activities, and opportunities. It is important to
girls and boys social development to learn in a single-sex setting from women and men,
respectively. If boys and girls are not shown healthy examples of real women and men, they
are forced to derive the definition from the media.

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Action Plan
Action Plan Summary Outline
The following action plan will be implemented with my German III class this coming
fall. All students in this class will be sophomores. There will be approximately twelve students in
the class with more girls than boys. The exact numbers are yet to be determined.
1. Create a physical classroom environment that is ideal for both girls and boys. This will
include seating the boys towards the front and the girls towards the back of the classroom,
keeping a fan readily available as white noise to cover noises potentially annoying to girls, and
creating a sheet for students to fill out with their name and time to meet with me when they need
extra help. A consideration I need to address with the sign-up sheet is that girls will sign up on
their own and boys will need to be told. Therefore, I will first let students sign up as needed, and
then request them to sign up if I feel they need it or receive a poor grade on a quiz or test.
2. Design and deliver instruction and assignments in two parts where one part is ideal for
teaching girls, and one part is ideal for teaching boys. The part for the girls will be reading a
story, answering questions based on the literature, and connecting the content to real-life
applications. The part for the boys will be reading a non-fiction article and physically recreating
what they have read in short skits or plays. Students will work in small groups with like genders
for both assignments. A consideration I need to address is finding appropriate pieces for students
to read that are not too difficult.
3. Assess students knowledge of the content at the end of the two assignments with a
quiz that includes the same content.
Targeted Student Learning Objective(s)

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1. Standardized goal: Wisconsins Model Academic Standards for Foreign Languages

C.1. Oral presentations: Students will present student-created and/or authentic short plays,
stories, skits, poems, and songs
2. Targeted learning objective: same
Task(s) and Essential Proficiency Criteria for Targeted Learning Objective(s)
1. Task: Students will create a presentation to review all major concepts from last year in
a way best suited for their genders and then take a quiz on the concepts.
2. Criteria that Prove Proficiency in Meeting Targeted Learning Objective(s)
a. Students have correct grammar and spelling 85% of the time on the quiz.
b. Students correctly use at least four of the given major concepts in their
presentations.
c. Students correctly conjugate verbs in the present tense and use correct past
participles 95% of the time on the quiz.
Method(s) to Assess Progress of Proficiency for Targeted Learning Objective(s)
1. A group presentation on last years content that includes any of the following:
authentic short plays, stories, skits, poems, and songs.
2. A quiz on the major concepts from last year assessed by the teacher.
Reflective Summary
I anticipate the implementation of this plan to impact my students learning in three ways.
First, students will be better focused during instruction because students will be physically seated
in a part of the room to help them pay better attention and hear me. I see this change improving
retention and minimizing problems with classroom management. Second, students will feel more
comfortable coming to me for extra help or support when they are either in charge of figuring out

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the best time to come, or are told to sign up and see me. Many female students have asked me in
the past if they could come in for help and the sign-up sheet will save me the time discussing a
meeting time. By requesting students to see me if they were absent or did not do well on an
assessment, male students will not feel like they are surrendering any competencies by coming in
outside of class to see me. Instead, they will simply be following how class will be run. Third, I
anticipate the two-part instruction and assignment projects to make more meaningful and lasting
connections in students brains and yield high scores on the quizzes. If this is true, I see myself
designing more two-part instruction lessons in the future.

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References
Ahour, T., & Abdi, M. (2015). The relationship between EFL learners' multiple intelligences and
vocabulary learning strategies use with a focus on gender. Theory & Practice In
Language Studies, 5(4), 800-809. doi:10.17507/tpls.0504.16
Okuniewski, J. E. (2014). Age and gender effects on motivation and attitudes in German
learning: the Polish context. Psychology Of Language & Communication, 18(3), 251.
doi:10.2478/plc-2014-0017
Sax, L. (2005). Why gender matters: What parents and teachers need to know about the
emerging science of sex differences. New York: Broadway Books.