In my web scanning, one of the sites that has intruded and stayed on with me is BabaMail (21/6/18) and the following is excerpted from this site.
It is no secret that boys and girls play different games and think differently from each other from kindergarten, yet both need similar things out of school. However, when boys and girls are put together in one class, the differences between them become very obvious — the boys are interested in one thing, while the girls are interested in another.
So, what can be done to maintain full concentration in class? An experiment on the subject in an elementary school in Russia, where gender segregation took place only during lessons, yielded results that surprised them. The goal was to examine where there is a higher achievement — in mixed classrooms or in those that are separated?
Distractions during class
Psychologists believe that the desire to impress members of the opposite sex begins at a very young age. When both genders learn together, they are subconsciously trying to impress each other, thus leading to them being distracted. However, when students are in separated classrooms, students have more concentration.
Differences in the development of the sexes that create a learning gap
In the opinion of researchers, mental and physical development in boys tends to be later than girls by about two to three years. Due to the more rapid development of female brains and the desire not to hinder them, education systems tend to be geared more towards girls, leaving boys just slightly behind.
Shyness and the desire to participate in classes
Many pedagogical considerations come before deciding what to teach in class and one of them is the psychological aspect that deals with the child’s psyche. Girls are often known to be shyer than boys. While they are good at carrying out certain tasks with precision, their shyness when in a class full of boys can sometimes be difficult for them and cause them to hold back out of fear of ridicule, leading to a reduction in class participation.
Competitiveness and different ways of solving problems
Most boys are more daring than girls and love to learn their own lessons. As a rule, they tend to step out of the box when completing assignments and try to find their own ways to reach answers, making each task a new adventure. The female perception is more inclusive, imaginary and emotional. They like problematic issues that make them more involved and active in finding solutions. Moreover, the competitiveness in them gives them the push to be the ones who find the solution first.
Mutual respect and group tasks
Both groups were given group tasks in which they had to find a solution acceptable to the entire group. During almost every group assignment, it became clear that the girls tended to excel more than the boys and quickly divided the roles, discussed the solution to the problem, and solved it together in a friendly, humble and dignified manner.
Demonstrating leadership skills and expressing personal opinions
While girls are often shy and afraid to be portrayed in a certain way in a mixed class, boys also hesitate and fear to express their thoughts openly and honestly with girls. The experiment proved that in the absence of girls, boys were not afraid to express their opinions and thoughts even if they were contrary to popular opinions.
Separating classes by gender has its supporters and its critics. Critics argue that separation will create sexual tension in the future, and is the first step towards sexism and the separation of mental and physical characteristics. There is also a theory that all-male classrooms are a good environment for growing future psychopaths.
