Deborah Tannen Gender In The Classroom Summary

A study found that a woman's voice is only heard about 40% of the time, even though they make up 60% of a class (Eddy et al.). The essay “Gender in the Classroom” by Deborah Tannen, explains some of the observed differences between women and men in the classroom. She describes some of these differences in the speaking and participation of the two genders. After giving her examples, she analyzes where these different behaviors originated from. She ends her essay with a short anecdote on her own experience as a teacher experiencing the differences between genders. Tannen argues that a person’s gender will change how often they participate in class, she uses ethos to establish her observations as a teacher, logos to exemplify the differences between

From her research, Tannen claims, “I gained more insight into typically male and female ways of using language … the males talk more” (356). Tannen’s findings for her book let the reader understand that she is qualified to argue on the subject. She uses authority to introduce the reader to the main point of her argument, men speak more in the classroom. Opening her essay in this way ensures the reader believes in Tannen to argue her point, along with this the information provided gives a good foundation to build on. Her foundation, and what most of her argument will be on, that men dominate the classroom discussions is accepted by the reader due to Tannen’s authority. This authority comes from her knowledge as a teacher, who works with both

After breaking her class into small groups Tannen explains, “I could see plainly from my observation of the groups at work that women who never opened their mouths in class were talking away in the small groups” (359). Tannen’s results prove the idea that the genders participate in different ways. More specifically she uses all three rhetoric strategies in this one quote to explain to the audience that how comfortable someone feels will change how often, or even when they choose to participate. Starting with her ethos, she uses her professional background, not only as a teacher but also as a writer about gender in the classroom, to experiment in her classroom. This leads to logos, in this quote, she explains the outcomes of her experiment, data that has a direct correlation to scientific procedure, she explains in her essay that she broke the class up six times in different ways and the whole women’s group produced participation. Lastly, pathos is used through the word choice, when reading this quote the audience starts to feel included, either they feel included in her experiment or they feel like the people around them have found their place, overall making the reader sympathizes with the fact that the two genders show preferences in participating during