In Hawaii, all public schools are supposed to go through a stakeholder-involved process to adopt their academic and financial plans for the following year. Most people look forward to this process like doing taxes, or serving on juries, or getting a root canal. This year, our energetic vice principal led the process with sincerity and enthusiasm, and it was, for the most part, a positive endeavor. Speaking for myself, if I can come away with even one piece of insight that I didn't have before, I am satisfied. And I did.
One of the last things we had to do was look at the academic "data" - aw that dreaded four-letter word. This one piece stood out for me, and for many. We have a significant gender gap in achievement in which the girls out-perform the boys in ALL areas. I normally take test data with many grains of salt, but when I saw this one, it resonated. At the risk of being considered sexist for making generalizations about boys vs girls, I think the data, and especially my gut resonance to the data, needed to be taken seriously.
I know it's the boys who frustrate me because it's the boys who "fool around" too much, who don't focus, who get into fights, who don't control their impulses, who take pens apart to make spitball cannons, who swear, who get sent to the office for referrals, who defy authority. These are generalizations, but it is generally the truth. I love them for their energy, but the shadow part of this energy is frustration. Not to say that all girls are angels, but they generally don't have the negative behaviors that disrupt the classroom environment, as I set it up.
I didn't have to reflect too long to realize what I needed to do. It's what I've been saying I needed to do for a long time, but that I have a hard time doing in a significant way. I need to do more science, which I love anyway, and in math, I need to do more games. As for the classroom learning environment, I need to be more tolerant of noise, although that is a fine line because many of the girls complain when it is too noisy, and I need to consider their needs too. I noticed that if the learning is happening through hands-on games, no one notices the noise. In the games, I need to use competition as a motivator, balancing the goal of cooperation as well. That is also a fine line.
Now, I know that the "data" inspired me to make some conscious choices to have a more boy-friendly environment. It is enough for me, to have all my students engaged and enjoying learning. Ironically, even though I came to this resolve via test score data, I don't really care about the test score results. I think when I start making the test results the goal, I make behavioral control the issue, which becomes like herding wild goats with the boys. I believe that the obsession with standards and test scores is the problem. I lie if I say I don't care about the test results. It is hard not to let it affect you. That is also a fine line, to care enough and not to care too much about something that may or may not be connected to actual student learning. But focusing on meeting the needs of the students, boys and girls, is more valuable to me. It is what I try to make my credo.
