Seeing Gender Project

The central element in this project is the proposed CD-ROM set, “Seeing Gender: Tools for Change.”

Media Format

The CD-ROM package was designed to present research conducted as part of the local reform effort in an interactive way, but can also be used effectively by pre-service teachers as part of diversity classes or by in-service teachers and school boards interested in making their schools more culturally inclusive.

At the top of the screen is a set of ‘file folder’ tabs that the user can open. Four of the folders represent categories of gender bias, the other two deal with research on gender bias in general. Each “file folder” is a separate module. When the user ‘clicks’ on any one of the file folders, a menu (list of options) will appear to on the Screen. For example, textbooks might include linguistic bias, invisibility of girls/women as science students, stereotyping, use of male as standard (see discussion of male outlines in biology textbooks in Rossiter and Potter, 1990, for example), invisibility of women scientists as contributors, etc. When the user selects one of the options in the menu, the lesson designed for that topic is accessed.

Each lesson can include options similar to those shown to the right of Screen A – form of bias, research base, and interventions. Selecting ‘form of bias’ accesses a video segment or set of still images with voice over that appears on the Screen. This segment presents a concrete example of the type of bias being explored. Selecting ’research base’ or ‘interventions’ provides similar types of presentations for research underlying the form of bias and strategies shown to reduce gender bias, respectively.

Other elements of the screen design would vary across topics and across menu option, but would provide additional resources. For the user, interviews with students provide access to student perceptions that are rarely possible in local settings. Interviews with teachers/faculty members who have already worked through these issues and are actively involved in trying to reduce gender bias in their classrooms help the user see the process by which gender issues can be understood and addressed. ‘References,’ could include abstracts of a sample of relevant journal articles. ‘Reflection,’ would include a brief commentary of additional issues.

Illustrative Lessons

The strength of this interactive design is that it enables the STEM teacher/faculty member to explore gender issues from several different perspectives and then see the link between a source of bias, the research that supports its identification as a source of bias, and effective interventions. An example illustrates these linkages.

Linguistic bias sometimes acts as a magnet for critiques that any response to gender bias is nothing more than being ‘politically correct.’ The lesson might include several examples of texts which use the generic ‘he’ or ‘man’ and review the research that argues that a literal interpretation of ‘man’ as men characteristic of elementary school students persists through adulthood when most people can articulate the rules surrounding the use of the generic “man.’ Moreover, research demonstrates that many men feel left out when reading passages substitute a generic ‘she’ for ‘he.’ Video clips illustrating each research finding would be augmented by interviews with (1) researchers knowledgeable in this field, (2) female students who are sensitive to this issue or male students who felt left out when a generic ‘she’ is used, and (3) STEM teachers’/faculty members’ reactions to this issue. Finally, the ‘intervention’ option would present an example of how linguistic bias is removed without making the text awkward. Abstracts of other research articles or education articles would be available at the ‘References’ site. The ‘Reflections’ site might include additional discussion of the ‘politically correct’ arguments surrounding this issue.

Setting the Stage

Two modules would focus on the background knowledge that sets the stage for understanding how bias operates in our culture.
Work with in-service teachers, undergraduate students, and college faculty suggests that there are two primary barriers to understanding how gender bias operates in the culture. The first is simply that most of us are unaware of the significant body of research that has explored how our behaviors and perceptions are shaped by what Valian (1999) terms as “gender schema.” The second barrier is the perception that if gender bias exists, it is a relatively small bias and of little importance. These two issues will be addressed using the same interactive format as that described for the various sources of gender bias in education. A similar screen format will be developed and a combination of video clips, interviews, abstracts of research papers, and reflective discussions will be provided. The goal of these modules is to provide the larger context within which STEM teachers/faculty members can understand why bias operates in classrooms.

Gender Schema
Accumulated Disadvantage
Instructional Materials
Classroom interactions

This project was inspired by the design of a CD-ROM package developed by Media Designs, Inc. in conjunction with the U.S. Department of Education-funded project on multicultural reform (Circles of Support: Teaching and Learning in Multicultural Settings, 2000)

Field Testing

Field testing, will be conducted for two purposes:
First, feedback on the usefulness of the CD-ROM set will be sought from a much broader sample of the target audience than used for the beta testing. As in the case of beta testing, volunteers will be sought from the target population – high school teachers and college faculty members in STEM fields. The volunteers will be provided a copy of the final version of the CD-ROM set in exchange for their participation.
The second purpose in field testing is to explore ways in which the CD-ROM set can be integrated into face-to-face professional development activities. The primary goal of this part of the field test is to develop sample materials for integrating the CD-ROM into classroom or professional development settings.

Dissemination

Presentations will be made at selected professional conferences for the purpose of recruiting individuals and/or organizations to participate in field testing. The range of professional organizations that could be targeted for dissemination efforts is relatively large. At the high school level, the National Science Teachers Association (NSTA) certainly provides the largest venue. However, the individual disciplines often have professional organizations that serve both high school teachers and college faculty who are primarily interested in teaching. Organizations concerned primarily with gender issues, such as the Association of Women in Science (AWIS) or Women in Engineering Programs and Advocates Network (WEPAN) offer additional venues, as well as American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). Finally, project staff will identify a distributor, such as the Women’s Educational Equity Act Resource Center, to continue dissemination on a cost-recovery basis.