1 Language and gender: learning and understanding

In countries around the world, there is a common situation in many secondary schools:

• students are learning in a language that is not their first or home language
• teachers are teaching in a language that is not their first or home language.

This means students must learn complex subjects such as mathematics, science, history and geography through an unfamiliar language, and teachers must use a second language (or, for many teachers, a third or fourth language) to explain academic content and manage lessons.

This is a challenge for students and teachers alike, so what happens when students do not understand, or only partly understand the language of instruction?

Poor comprehension is a barrier to learning. Students must understand the teacher, in order to learn and should also be able to practise and demonstrate their understanding through speaking and writing, so teachers can check student progress.

Student comprehension impacts on behaviour for learning so when students do not understand, they can become disengaged and disruptive and disruption and poor behaviour are additional barriers to learning.

In classrooms where there is poor comprehension and disengaged or disruptive behaviour, girls are additionally disadvantaged:

• Girls may already struggle to attend school.
• They may not be able to study at home, because of chores and family commitments.
• Girls may have less exposure to the language of instruction outside school, and fewer opportunities to practice it.
• Girls may have less exposure to language about certain subjects, if these subjects are considered inappropriate for them.
• They may lack the confidence to ask questions and participate.

In such classrooms, girls may be silenced or bullied and may also feel unsafe. Teachers may also address girls and boys differently, verbally and non-verbally. Some teachers may even use different languages with girls and boys.

Gender biases are expressed through language that reveals the belief that girls can not perform as well as boys, or that boys should not allow themselves to be outperformed academically by girls – or in any other way. Teachers often discourage girls from taking science by telling them that such subjects are for boys or are too difficult for girls. When a girl is assertive, she is told to stop acting like a boy, and when a boy cries, he is cautioned to stop behaving like a woman.

But spoken language is only part of the communication. … An indifferent shrug of the shoulders or rolling of the eyes suggests that the student is too foolish or bothersome to warrant attention.

(Mlama et al., 2005, in Gender Responsive Pedagogy – A Teacher’s Handbook, p. 14)

With this food for thought, now read from the EMEGen research findings.

2 EMEGen research

A problem in English Medium Education (EME) is that both girl and boy students struggle to understand the teacher but students in local language education also report not understanding the teacher.

Here are comments about language, comprehension and learning from students in different parts of the world:

‘Some teachers speak very fast sometimes [and] it is difficult for me.’

‘[I don’t understand] the way they speak English.’

‘I don’t understand some teachers’ writing.’

‘Some teachers don’t explain the lesson to us in a way we will understand.’

‘…whenever a teacher teaches in English, I don’t understand the lesson.’

‘Honestly, I don’t understand English.’

‘I want teachers to use different methods to teach us so that we will understand.’

Students report a range of barriers to comprehension, such as:

• the speed of the teacher speaking
• the teacher’s pronunciation
• the teacher’s writing on the board
• not understanding the academic content
• not understanding the teacher’s explanations
• not understanding the language of instruction
• the teacher’s methods.

In interviews, students say they must work extra-hard at home to catch-up and learn.

Teachers teach us in English, and we hardly understand it. When we go home then we read it twice. After that we get a clear picture of it.

(Female student in Nepali EME school)

Teachers know these problems. They see connections between comprehension, behaviour and learning – and the impact on girls.

When I ask why don’t speak, they say ‘Sir, I feel afraid... My friends also laugh.’ So, they don’t have confidence.

(Male teacher, Nepali Medium school)

Because of the language, they feel shy. They can’t say the things they want to say

(Female teacher, English Medium school, Nepal)

… girls don’t like talking or participating in class activities together with boys unless the teacher insists, and this affects their learning.

(Female teacher, Hausa Medium school, Nigeria)

… boys are more outspoken and feel free to ask questions or participate in classroom activities.

(Male teacher, English Medium school, Nigeria)

Think about these research findings, in your context.

In your experience, which students are less confident to speak up and ask questions? They might be girls or students from certain social or ethnic groups, or students with disabilities.

In your experience, how much do learners understand? Is comprehension different for different groups of learners? What factors affect student comprehension and participation?

In your context, do male and female teachers have different experiences of English or languages about certain subjects? Do these differences affect communication with students and their learning?

With the EMEGen research in mind, now go to your activities.

3 Activities for school leaders

In these activities, you will observe teaching with a focus on comprehension, participation and gender responsiveness. You will also consider gender biases in your own professional feedback to teachers.

You can guide and support teachers to try out or adapt other activities that aim to improve the learning environment, in Section 4 ‘Activities for teachers’ and Section 5 ‘Activities for informal learning facilitators’.

3.1 School leaders – Activity 1

Observe participation

Let teachers know that you would like to listen in on their lessons for your own professional learning.

Make clear that you are not making any assessment or evaluation of them.

Informal observation can give you useful and realistic information, and it should not put the teacher under pressure.

1. Make informal observations of lessons in different subjects around your school. Do this over a few days, walking around the school and standing or sitting outside classrooms.

   Your teachers may be required to teach in a certain language, such as English, or, teachers may be permitted to use local languages to help students understand. So, whatever your context is, the focus here is on:

   • what teachers do to help students understand
   • how teachers check student understanding
   • how students show they do or do not understand
   • how girls and boys are addressed
   • how girls and boys participate.



2. As you listen to lessons, make mental or written notes:

   • How do students show or tell the teacher that they understand? How reliable is this, do you feel?
   • How do students show or tell the teacher they do not understand – and what does the teacher do in this case?
   • How do teachers check on students’ understanding? Does the class repeat words or phrases? Do students stand and recite?
   • Does the teacher check on individual students, or certain groups of students?
   • How do students practice their understanding? Do they answer questions, make notes, repeat what the teacher says word-for-word, or use their own words?
   • How many students ask questions?



3. Make notes on the participation of girls and boys. It is not necessary to record the names of individual students.

   • Which students speak more and less?
   • Are there students who never participate – who are they?
   • If students are disengaged or disruptive, why does this happen?
   • Does the teacher seem to be addressing all students, or only some students?
   • Do teachers address girls and boys differently, verbally or non-verbally, or in different languages?

What did you notice about teachers, girls and boys?

Discussion

Write down what you think teachers do well for student participation, and what they could develop further. For example:

• Teachers give time for girls to answer.
• Teachers could check on the comprehension of girls and students from the language minority group.
• Ask teachers to share what they do that to help student participation, such as:
  • Slow down, repeat and rephrase in different words.
  • Allow students to discuss briefly with a partner before answering.
  • Reward students who demonstrate understanding, not punish students who get it wrong.
  • Reward partial understanding as well as correct mistakes.
  • Ask questions to girls first, then boys.
  • Give girls time to form answers.
  • Arrange seating to break up students who dominate.
  • Arrange pairs or groups so girls can work together.

3.2 School leaders – Activity 2

Gender-responsive language

The words we use can transmit positive messages that support learning, or negative messages that inhibit learning. For example:

• A teacher tells a group of misbehaving boys they are ‘useless and empty-headed’.
• A teacher, in frustration says to a girl who is not performing well, ‘why are you here?’ and ‘your family is wasting money’.

Such messages can have an impact on academic performance and willingness to participate.

Gender-responsive language treats boys and girls as equal partners and provides a supportive learning environment for everyone.

Try out these activities with teachers:

1. Analyse the language of the teaching and learning resources being used this week. From a gender perspective, is any of it negative? If so, how can we change it?

a. Read the chart on classroom language and gender-responsive practices.

(Uworwabayeho, A. et al. (2018) cited in FAWE, 2020, p. 46)

b. Arrange informal listening observations of classrooms.

You can:

1. informally listen in to teachers’ lessons and give feedback.
2. have teachers pair up and give feedback to each other.
3. ask two students to listen and informally report back to the teacher.

Now read the brief research summary below, about professional feedback to women and men:

Actionable feedback: different for men and women?

Research in 2021 based on computerised analysis of more than one-thousand pieces of written feedback to political leaders in the UK identified that feedback given to women tends to be less actionable and less effective than feedback given to men. Women were encouraged to ‘cope’ and ‘get along’ and be tolerant. Men were encouraged to be assertive, ‘claim their leadership space’ and display their confidence. Women’s lack of confidence was seen as an inherent flaw, without actionable advice on how to change this.

Analyse your own professional feedback to teachers.

1. Do you give some of these messages unintentionally?
2. Do you think teachers’ feedback to students might give these messages to girls and boys?

Constructive actionable feedback focuses on what can be improved, not what is wrong. Such feedback is based on observed and specific knowledge, skills or behaviour.

4 Activities for teachers

How do you know that your students understand what you have taught them and how do you check? When students do not understand, what do you do?

In an inclusive learning environment, it is important to check regularly on student comprehension and allow students to let you know when they don’t understand.

You can create a more inclusive learning environment when you support and encourage students who may have less exposure to the language of instruction because they work, or because of norms about where they can go and when and to whom they can speak with.

These activities focus on student comprehension and ways of checking their learning. The activities encourage students to participate so you can assess what they know.

The activities are designed to be done within your normal routines and practices. The Activities for informal learning facilitators in Section 5 may also be appropriate to your classroom.

4.1 Teachers – Activity 1

Ways of checking student understanding

Checking students’ understanding is a part of every lesson and you can do it by using stimulating ways to get their attention and keeping them involved.

Try out these activities and observe student responses and participation.

When you plan the activities, think about how you will arrange the classroom to ensure equal participation of girls and boys.

1. Questions for the lesson:

   • Tell your students about the topic of tomorrow’s lesson. Have them each prepare two questions about the lesson. On the day of the lesson, have students look for the answers to their questions. Ask them if their questions were answered in the lesson. Was the lesson what they expected? What questions do they still have?

     For a large class, have pairs or groups of students prepare two or three questions each.

     OR

     You prepare a list of questions about the lesson. Write the questions on the board and have students answer the questions at the end of the lesson.

2. ‘What I know’:

   • Tell students about the lesson’s content and objectives. Draw a chart on the board and ask students to tell you: what they know, and what they think they know, and what they need to know. This helps you to find out about their prior knowledge and their learning needs.

3. ‘Spot the mistakes’:

   • After your lesson, give a written task or explain the topic again but include some errors or wrong information. See if your students understood the lesson and are paying attention!

4. What we learned:

   • After a lesson, have students work in pairs or groups of three to tell each other what they learned. Have them write together what they learned – this can be in the form of a story or a dialogue. You can have girls and boys work separately or together. You can have students from the same language group work together.

4.2 Teachers – Activity 2

Have students say or write it in their own words

Teachers can lecture students and have them repeat what we say or repeat the textbook, but it is only when they speak or write in their own words that we can find out what they know.

A good way to check student understanding is to have them tell it or write it in their own words.

Have students rephrase a topic that you have taught them, using their own words. Give them time to talk or make notes before rephrasing and have students find words that have the same meaning. This is a useful method in any subject lesson that helps students to learn the subject content and subject language at the same time.

For example:

‘A cell is the smallest unit of living matter.’

Ask students if they can think of different ways to say this.

Students can work on their own or with a partner, to come up with different ways of expressing the same fact. They can use a textbook, a dictionary or an online search. For example:

‘A cell is…

• the smallest unit of every living thing
• a fundamental unit of life
• a basic building blocks of humans, animals and plants.’

You can vary this by having students give their own examples. For example, to describe a fraction in different ways:

‘Cut the bread into thirds to share it with three people.’

‘My exam result is expressed as a fraction. I got 18/20.’

You can vary these activities by having students translate or rephrase textbook passages from one language to another (for example, from English to the local language, or vice-versa).

As students work, you can circulate, ask them questions, check their understanding, and make corrections as necessary.

You are likely to see that some students understand partially. When many students misunderstand one idea in particular, this is an opportunity for whole class teaching to correct the misunderstanding.

It is good practice to listen to students. Of course, you may not be able to listen to every student in every lesson. But you can plan to listen to groups or pairs over the course of a week.

5 Activities for informal learning facilitators

These two activities focus on comprehension, speaking, listening and asking questions. The activities encourage learners to develop skills to:

• use their own words
• speak confidently
• listen closely
• ask for clarification when they do not understand something.

Learners, especially girls, may not feel confident to admit that they do not understand something. They might fear being shamed or bullied by others for not understanding. In an informal learning environment, you can help learners to develop confidence for asking questions so that they understand. When a need for clarification is expressed, this is a sign of dedication to learning.

You will need to find some appropriate readings for the level of your group. These can be from newspapers, magazines, advertising or different books from the library. One reading is provided for you.

5.1 Facilitators – Activity 1

Comprehension and speaking practice

A. Listen together to a short news bulletin or a radio programme. After listening, review and practise any unfamiliar vocabulary or phrases. Then ask learners in pairs to rephrase it in their own words.

OR

B. Read out a short piece (news, public announcement, advertisement, short fiction or poem). Then have learners read it silently on their own. Here is an example that you could use:

1. Discuss the topic, and any words or sentences that are confusing. Then model different words and phrases that have the same meanings, for example:

   A new report suggests…

   A report that is just published says…

   A non-profit group is reporting that…

2. Have learners retell it using their own words – encourage confident speaking!

   You can vary this activity by asking learners to bring in something that they read out to the group.

5.2 Facilitators – Activity 2

Speaking and asking for clarification

Have learners work in pairs.

1. Prepare a set of short readings, one for each pair. Choose readings that are sufficiently challenging for the level of your group: a short piece of news, information or non-fiction, a short story or a poem.

2a. In the pairs, have one learner read out the piece to their partner. Then have the pairs discuss these questions:

• What parts did you understand?
• What did you not understand?
• What prevented your understanding?

2b. Emphasise to learners that there are many acceptable and polite ways to say that they do not understand. It can be useful to say why we do not understand – this can help the speaker to slow down or explain in different words. Model different phrases to learners and invite them to practise, for example:

• I am sorry, but I did not understand because you speak very fast for me. Please could you say it again more slowly?
• I only understood the first part, please can you explain the second part?
• I do not know much about engineering, and I did not follow your explanation. Could you use less technical language, or more simple words?
• Could you explain that word?
• I understood up until the part where...

3. You can vary the activity by reading aloud to the group. You can decide to read quickly or slowly, loudly or quietly, or with different pronunciations. Then have them discuss what they did and didn’t understand and why.

4. Acknowledge that it can be challenging to ask for clarification, and sometimes it can feel embarrassing, but when a lack of understanding is covered up, students do not learn. When students ask questions it shows they are willing to learn!

6 Further resources

Documentation of Gender Responsive Pedagogy as a Best Practice by the Forum for African Women Educationalists (FAWE)

7 References

FAWE (2017) Gender Responsive Pedagogy (GRP): A Teacher's Handbook by Forum for African Women Educationalists | Forum des éducatrices africaines (FAWE) - Issuu.

FAWE (2018) Gender Responsive Pedagogy: A Toolkit for Teachers and Schools. 2nd, updated ed. Nairobi: Forum for African Women Educationalists. FAWE House.

Girl Effect (2023) 2023 Girls & Mobile Report. Available at: https://girleffect.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/2023-Girls-and-Mobile-Report-FINAL-2.pdf (Accessed: 23 February 2023).

Lynn, B. (2023) Report: Online ‘Digital Divide’ Leaves Girls Behind (voanews.com).

Mlama, P., Dioum, M., Makoye, H., Murage, L., Wagah, M. and Washika, R. (2005) Gender Responsive Pedagogy: A Teacher’s Handbook. Nairobi: Forum for African Women Educationalists (FAWE). Available at: https://issuu.com/fawe/docs/gender_responsive_pedagogy_-_a_teac.

8 Acknowledgements

9 Videos

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