Teachers' perspectives of gender differences in the social behaviours of preschool children : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Education at Massey University, Manawatū, New Zealand
Loading...
Date
2017
DOI
Open Access Location
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Massey University
Rights
The Author
Abstract
The present research study explored early childhood teachers’ perspectives about social
behaviours and gender in young children, in particular the way in which children’s
gender related to teachers’ reports of the prevalence of, perspectives about, and
strategies used in response to children’s social behaviours. The specific social behaviours
examined within this study were prosocial behaviours, social leadership, social
dominance, and aggressive behaviours. This study was designed within an interpretivist
and pragmatic epistemology, and used a mixed methods online survey to investigate
teachers’ perspectives. The online survey was comprised of four sections:
demographics; defining social behaviours and their traits; social behaviour scenarios;
and gender and Te Whāriki. To allow investigation of differential responses related to
gender, two versions of the survey were created where the gender of the child portrayed
in the social behaviour scenarios differed across survey versions. The gendered
scenarios were used to gather data on whether there was a difference in teachers’
perspectives about and the teaching strategies used for children’s social behaviours
based on the gender of the children involved. The majority of the responses to the
survey indicated that the teachers identified there to be little difference in the display
of social behaviours in young children based on children’s gender. However, the two
social behaviours which were reported by the teachers as having the most differences
based on gender were social leadership and aggression. The teachers’ strategies
identified in the findings showed that there was some difference in teaching strategies
used based on the children’s gender, specifically in the areas of social dominance and
aggression. The findings provide a snapshot of the way in which teachers define and
interpret social behaviours, and suggest that gender plays a limited, but still potentially
significant role in the teaching practices they chose to adopt in a variety of scenarios.
The teacher’s acknowledged the importance of ensuring gender equity in their practices,
but findings suggest that further support may be needed to aid in the delivery of
equitable practices.
Description
Keywords
Preschool children, Sex differences, Sex differences (Psychology), Research Subject Categories::SOCIAL SCIENCES::Social sciences::Education