There has been much publicity about gender inequities in classrooms, but the research literature on this subject had not been systematically analyzed or reviewed - until now. This book is the first to summarize and critically review the observational research and findings on gender literacies. The authors present five genres of studies - gender and reading, writing, discussion, electronic or posttypographical text, and literacy autobiography - and use the perspective of feminist sociology to analyze what was revealed, as well as what was omitted, from these studies. Their synthesis will be of value in breaking down gender barriers in the classroom by raising awareness of gender issues in literacy learning and practice; publicizing successful interventions and recommendations for instructional practice; and giving direction to further research on the topic.

Until now, there has been no systematic analysis or review of the research on gender and literacy. With all the media attention and research surveys surrounding gender bias and the inequities that continue to flourish in education, a synthesis of the research studies was needed to raise awareness of gender issues in learning and literacy, to provide successful interventions and recommendations to educators, and to point out the direction for future inquiries by examining the unanswered questions of the existing research. For the convenience of readers, the studies are organized by genre: gender and discussion, reading, writing, electronic text, and literacy autobiography. Published by International Reading Association