Gender differences through a constructivist teaching approach

researcher/teacher educator, aimed to employ. PE pre-service teachers could access the mobile website independently at their own pace and use it to create their own learning experiences through a constructivist pedagogy. Of course, I aimed to facilitate the learning, although there were no set expectations of what the outcomes of the lesson for both males and females might be. One male PE pre-service teacher compared this constructivist learning to the direct approaches led by the teacher educator when he noted:

“By differentiating it enabled us all to be active within the lesson, which is what you want with the kids at your school. But in previous lessons it wasn’t differentiated, it was just like right you are going to do this, you are going to do that, and then that is when you got the girls sitting out. There were some lads sitting out as well, but I specifically remember there was a group of girls and they didn’t even get up for an hour, they just lay there. That is what happens at school” (Levi, pre-service teacher, focus group 4).

As PE pre-service teachers participated in a constructivist lesson using the mobile website, they began to interpret the information in their own way in an autonomous learning environment. The observations revealed that whilst both males and females for the most part worked in the confines of perceived masculine and feminine constructs (Brown, 2005), it was the ability to perform physical skills that dominated the learning. The males who worked together immediately accessed the advanced balances from the mobile website and worked down to the beginner’s skills if necessary. Most females were more cautious and started at a beginner level. The males seemed engrossed in the physicality of the task, lifting not only their own body weight but also that of the

162 body weight of their peers. I noted in my research diary: “the lads climbed on each other’s shoulders, trying to create the tallest pyramid” (Research diary entry, observation 4). It was also noted that some of the girls became restricted in the more physically demanding activities: “attempting to lift their partner’s body weight with little success and collapsing in heaps of laughter” (Research diary entry, observation 4).

Most of the males in the study thrived on challenge, attempting to perform what they referred to as “the most dangerous skills”; “ones that looked like somebody could really hurt themselves” (Research diary entry, observation 5). Whilst it was evident that the girls did not engage in competition and did at times sit back and observe the males, it was never apparent that they were subordinate, (e.g. inferior to the males). A male PE pre-service teacher when interviewed said:

“For me in boys PE, I think there will always be, no matter what they are doing, there will be an element of competition. That is my personal opinion. Whereas with gymnastics, dance, aerobics, they will find a way of making it competitive” (Dillon, pre-service teacher, focus group 4).

Similarly, PE pre-service teachers delivering to male pupils on placement held the perception that competition was key to managing success in gymnastics. In fact, it was almost used as a way of encouraging the boys to take part:

“In the boys lesson I found that I was able to use ‘oh lads you need really good core strength for this’ and they would go alright I’m going to do it then. Who has got the best core strength? And they would try something out. Or who has got the best strength in their shoulders, and they would try a handstand or something like that. That was the way I got away from the whole oh, it is a girl’s sport. Whereas the girls, I don’t think they would react as much to that. I’d like to keep the delivery the same though. Because I’ve not actually delivered to females much I can’t really say, but I’d like to think I’d be able to try and keep the approach similar because really, they are both pupils and there is no reason why you shouldn’t” (Dillon, pre-service teacher, focus group 4).

PE pre-service teachers did reveal the influence of gender on their pedagogical decisions when teaching gymnastics. For example, there seemed to be a perception that boys were fearless, thriving on risk and danger, which then had the potential to pose problems when using constructivist pedagogies.

163 “I had a lower set of year eight boys on vaulting. They had never done it before so a lot of it was… well particularly at the beginning, command style because they have got a lot of potential to hurt themselves, and I know they have no fear. They were going to throw themselves around, so it was command at the beginning. And then they were creating their own routine that was part of their assessment. So, there was an element of guided discovery, they had to create it themselves and I just gave them the means, the content, this is what you have got to do, now you go and create your own. So, it was a mixture I found” (Ella, pre-service teacher, focus group 4).

Thus, the data revealed that some PE pre-service teachers referred to and understood the importance of gender equality and made suggestions about how they would provide balanced and equitable provision for the pupils that they taught. However, the PE pre-service teachers gendered responses in relation to the pedagogical use of the mobile website, identified challenges. The next section analyses the data on gendered differences and mobile website use.

6.5.3 Analysis of the gender differences and associated pedagogies