In his book "Why Gender Matters," Dr. Leonard Sax talks about the gender differences he has discovered in children. In each chapter of the book Sax goes into detail how boys and girls differ not only on the biological level but how these biological differences affect the way they react in different situations. According to Dr. Sax, the biological differences also make the way children respond to different situations predictable and therefore dictate the way children should be raised, disciplined, and educated. Four theories that Sax discusses in his book and that I agree with in accordance with my teaching philosophies are hearing, aggression, emotions, and authority. One idea that Dr. Sax touches on is that girls have better hearing than boys. To back this up Dr. Sax states "studying 350 newborn baby girls and boys, found that girls' hearing was substantially more sensitive than the boys', especially in the 1,000- to 4,000-Hz range, which is so important for speech discrimination" (Sax 17). Dr. Sax also goes on to state that since girls are more sensitive to noise that extra noisy classrooms make it harder for girls to concentrate and learn.
This theory would affect my teaching in a sense of how the classroom is set up and run. I would direct boys to sit in the front of the classroom but I would also set the classroom up in a way where the teacher would be closer and more interactive with the students to make sure everyone can hear. To help the girls, I would do my best to eliminate extra noise that may be distracting. Dr. Sax also discusses how boys and girls differ on aggression, how it is important, and how it can be channeled into a productive outlet. Assuming the scientific approach of evolution, Sax uses primates to depict the aggressive tendencies of boys and girls. Sax states that "the boy monkeys were six times more likely to engage in round-and-tumble play than the girl monkeys were" (Sax 60).
In his book, "Why Gender Matters," Dr. Leonard Sax addresses the topic of sex and the biological differences between males and females. ... The second chapter of "Why Gender Matters" is titled "Female Brains, Male Brains." ... Sax presented in only the first two chapters of Why Gender Matters. ... Sax's studies about gender is huge for teachers. ...
