Gender Differences Essay
The main purpose of this paper is to investigate how the gender differences affect children in different fields: art, math and science, and play.
Gender and biological differences in child development are laid from an early age. This process actively begins during the preschool age with the development of children’s verbal, logical, and abstract thinking. Moreover, it is important to understand that the problem of children’s sexual socialization not only has a physiological character, but also a psychological one. The evaluation of gender differences in the senior preschool age is important because boys and girls perceive the world around them differently and are distinguished by their level of thinking.
Thus, this paper presents a discussion and an exploration of gender differences as reflected in child development and in fields, such as art, math and science, and play.
Gender Differences in Art
Let us discuss art, such as drawing, and examine gender differences between boys and girls in this kind of art. To start with, this is a widespread fact that girls are more creative and constructive than boys. Girls are better in school subjects, such as literature, drawing, arts, and music. “While the boys expressed a belief that they are good at math and science, the girls believe they are good in English/language arts” (Lupart, Cannon & Telfer, 2004, p. 39).
From the very stages drawings of boys and girls are different from each other. The girls’ pictures are brighter and have a lot of small details, for example, figured windows, fountains, and trees. They tend to use unusual colors. The boys’ pictures almost always are a new, unexpected and principled decision: a spaceship house, a house standing on three elephants, a house entwined with huge beautiful flowers, etc. In addition, the boys’ pictures are symbols of freedom and travel (wind, window, mountains, bridges, skyline, space flight, cars, planes, rockets, bicycles, boats), symbols of enemies (dragons, robots, monsters, snakes), a symbol of power and control ( sword, spear, bow, arrows, fortress), symbols of victory (flag, horn, etc.). According to Fausto-Sterling (1992), “The claim that clear-cut evidence exists to show that fetal hormones make boys more active, aggressive or athletic than girls is little more than fancy, although harmless it is not” (p. 141).
In comparison with boys, girls’ pictures have a completely different system of symbols: symbols of motherhood (dolls, bride, cribs or strollers), symbols of femininity, elegance, lightness, tenderness (balloons, birds, princess), symbols of home comfort (house, table, and dishes), symbols of wealth in the house (berries, fruits, and vegetables), and symbols of feminine beauty (flowers, brighteyes, and clothes).
Gender Differences in Science and Math
Boys are often thought of as being better at math and science than girls. In the past decade, psychologists and educators have a look at these gender differences more closely. Man’s achievements are largely determined by his conception of himself, his self-esteem. Psychological research has established that every child has self-confidence in his/her ability to learn mathematics. It turned out that math abilities are higher in boys than in girls. Boys are more confident in their mathematical abilities. Such high confidence has been manifested in boys, according to some sources, already in first grade. The psychological research confirms that boys are not afraid of challenging and complex assignments. Their high mathematical self-concept allows them to choose and deal with tasks of increased difficulty. What about girls? They are ahead of boys in easy exercises, in algorithmic tasks, and in calculations in the elementary school. The picture changes in the sixth grade. Even in easy exercises, the girls are less successful than boys. This is due to low confidence of girls in their mathematical abilities. Surprisingly, compared with boys, girls make more mistakes in the calculations and are more likely to say “I do not know” in the test items. “…Female students were more likely than male students to correctly solve “conventional” problems (by) using algorithmic strategies; male students were more likely than female students to correctly solve “unconventional” problems (by) using logical estimation and insight” (Gallagher et al., 2000, p. 167).
Gender Differences in Play
Games are a main activity among children at the elementary age. The girls actively play dolls, mother and daughter games. The boys are interested in weapons, or vehicles. The boys’ games are more specific. They prefer to tinker with toys, such as construction sets, but the girls play more verbal games. Children’s game reflects a traditional view of gender roles in society. The girls take care of the house or take care of children on a daily basis. The boys fight against each other, drive tractors, build bridges and do carpentry. Thus, the foundation of morality is being laid during the game: for girls (women) generosity, dependability, and respect to boys (men); for boys (men) kindness, patience, loyalty, and respect to girls (women). Girls’ games often rely on short-range vision: mostly girls play in a limited space. Boys’ games more often rely on long-range vision: boys run around each other, and shoot at a target, using all their surroundings. Boys to their full mental development generally require more space than girls. “In contrast, the majority of boys’ play at the elementary school level consists of team sports with their multiple roles and coordinated interactions of a large group of players” (Crombie, 1988, p. 117).
Conclusion
In summary, it is possible to draw a conclusion that the gender differences become apparent in childhood. Boys strive for independence, but girls strive more for interdependence. Boys are better in math and science, but girls in art, drawing and literature. Moreover, boys are more likely to play games in which the more people the better. The girls prefer to gather in small groups. In addition, the girls often conduct trusting conversations and imitate relationships between adults. The gender stereotypes in behavior are formed during childhood. In adulthood, gender differences are even wider.
