The article that I found online was at Kare 11. This article interested me because it was about a school and since I am an elementary education major, school issues like this pertain to me. This is something I may have to deal with in my future career, and I need to be prepared for them.
The article is about single-gender classrooms. There are two schools in the twin cities that are experimenting with single-gender classrooms. One school is all girls and one is all boys. They are discussing the issues of how classrooms with one gender often have better learning environments and how they are able to focus more on certain topics that the specific gender they are teaching struggles in. They said that these classrooms also often avoid a lot of gossiping and drama and it allows them to focus more on their studies, instead of their boyfriends and girlfriends.
This is an intercultural issue because many cultures do not believe in single-gender classrooms, but some cultures believe in only having single-gender classrooms. It is an issue that many cultures face and that many cultures look down on others for. Everyone has their own certain ways of dealing with these issues, and they do not always match up.
The major issues cultures have are whether single-gender classrooms are better learning environments or not. Some cultures believe that they are and some cultures believe that boys and girls need to be immersed in the same classroom together to understand what real life is like. It is not an extreme issue, but it definitely has cause controversy and is a big difference between certain cultures.
I would classify this conflict as a high-context conflict. These are issues that deal with gender and roles in the classroom. They deal with customs and making sure that people are following the rules. In this type of conflict, it is important to be proper and follow the correct procedure and that is what the issue deals with.
Overall, the issue of whether single-gender classrooms are appropriate or not is an issue that will always be a topic between cultures. Not everyone is going to agree with it and not everyone is going to disagree. It depends on personal opinion, but it is also influenced by culture and the way we were raised.
What is your personal opinion on single-gender cultures? Do you support them or no?
I'm assuming you are asking our opinion of single-gender classrooms, not cultures. My opinion is that single-gender classrooms can be beneficial as they may be more likely to provide a better learning environment that isn't rife with distractions. However, I think it only fair that the parents of the students be made aware in advance so that they are able to make the decision as to whether or not they want their child in that situation. It reminds me a lot of Catholic school, which never seemed that harmful to the students' social skills, so I can't see this as being a bad option.
ReplyDeleteI also think that the single-gender classrooms should be up to the parent. I think girls will still gossip even when they are in single-gender classrooms but not single-gender schools. I don't see a negative side to having classrooms this way but it should be left up to the parent.
ReplyDeleteI feel like this wouldn't be a good thing because boys would be more likely to learn boy things and girls would be more likely to learn girl things. A school full of boys would probably focus on mechanical type things whereas a school of girls wouldn't. I had to take a wood-shop class in middle school and I thought it was really fun because that's what my dad does and I was able to learn more about it. If I had gone to an all girls school that class probably wouldn't have existed. I guess I feel it would limit what the teachers taught more to be more gender specific and I don't think that's a good thing. It might reduce distractions but girls will still have petty drama issues and still gossip. Maybe it would be more effective after puberty happens to reduce distractions but I think for younger kids it wouldn't really solve any problems.
ReplyDeleteI personally think that single gender classrooms is ridiculous. It seems inhumane to me. I think that having all one gender in a classroom is like hiding the children from something. How are kids going to be prepared for the real world when they are mostly surrounded with the same sex. I think the children would end up confused and unsure about the opposite sex when they are finally exposed more to them.
ReplyDeleteIf you are actually talking about single gender classrooms, like the rest seem to be talking about I would have to disagree with them. We have had many many converstaions about this in my college classes, but I just don't think they do anything for students. I think that boys and girls should be placed in the same classroom so they get a feel for socialization for one another. Boys and girls do learn a lot differently, but I still think they should be placed in the same classroom as a matter of my own opinion!
ReplyDeleteI do not think that single gender classrooms are bad, I just do not know if I would want to send my child into one. I think that it is important to have classrooms in which children are able to learn about both genders. I think that if children learn about both genders, they are able to understand the world better.
ReplyDeleteMy preference would be against single-gender classrooms. With that said, I heard one of my English teachers last semester speak very highly of one single-gender classroom that he visited not too long ago. So after I heard his comment, I started to rethink my opinion. I still would still side against single-gender classrooms, but one advantage with them is that teachers don't have to design class activities around two genders. With that said, I still prefer the normal two-gender classrooms because segregating classrooms in any way, I think, is walking down a slippery slope.
ReplyDeleteI think there would be some benefits to having single-gender classrooms. I think it would help to decrease distractions in the class, especially during middle school. I do see where this could cause some issues though. There would be the issue of having separate but equal schools and opportunities for boys and girls.
ReplyDelete