Week 6 Learning Journal

Points to Ponder

Are women learners really different from men?  Can gender be separated from class and race?

Ruminations

So, this week we are constructing knowledge by building wikis.  My group is studying Women's Ways of Knowing by Belenky, Clinchy, Tarule, and Goldberger (1986).  Their work in understanding women began as a collaborative effort in the 70's.  As graduate students they were bothered by the fact that women were not used as research subjects.  They proceeded to interview 135 women to determine if women know what they know differently than men.  They identified five ways of knowing: silence, received knowing, subjective knowing, procedural knowing, and constructed knowing.

Around the same time frame as Belenky et al (1986), Carol Gilligan was developing her theory explaining that men and women are different in their moral development (1982).  She claims that men approach morality with a justice orientation where women are more caring.  Although there is evidence to support her research, even Gilligan admits that men sometimes display the characteristics typically seen in women, which is why she titled her work, In a Different Voice. 

Both of these feminist works speak to me intuitively.  Yes, I think men and women are different and I think they approach the world differently.  However, do we learn differently?  I don't know.  How can one separate gender from culture, class, race, etc to determine gender is responsible for any one thing?  With research like Belenky and Gilligan that is based on interviews, I am a bit suspect that one can find almost anything one wants to look for.  Belenky et al (1986) characterizes the silent voice as mindless, obedient, and voiceless.  They say these women were mostly found in the social service agencies and were among "the youngest and most socially, economically, and educationally deprived (p. 23-24)."  Is that gender specific?  Are young men who have experienced poverty and abuse silenced?

Belenky, et al (1986) expand procedural knowing to include separate knowing and connected knowing.  In broad terms, connected knowers are more empathetic and receptive where separate knowers are critical and detached.  Although women typically score higher in connected knowing and men score higher in separate knowing, other research (Magdola, as cited in Khine and Hayes, 2010) states that these ways of knowing may be related to gender but not dictated by it.  Now, that makes sense!

Galloti (as cited in Khine and Hayes, 2010) found that although there was clear gender difference in preference of separate knowing and connected knowing, both genders are capable of both ways of knowing but may show a preference to one.  

I realize this review of research is by no means exhaustive, however, are these assumptions any different than claiming boys are more tactile and girls are more verbal?  I think educators must be very careful not to impose generalizations and stereotypes on their students.  I don't see where this research can be generalized or trusted, two necessary components to good research.  I, for one have often challenged the model of white, middle-age, red-headed women, and I intend to continue my trend!

Belenky, M. F., Clinchy, B. M., Goldberger, N. R., & Tarule, J. M. (1986). Women’s ways of knowing: The development of self, voice, and mind. New York: Basic Books.

Gilligan, C. (1982). In a Different Voice. Harvard University Press

Khine, M. and Hays, B. (2010). Investigating Women's Ways of Knowing. Issues in Educational Research, vol 20, issue 2. Retrieved from http://www.iier.org.au/iier20/khine.pdf on November 28, 2012.