Gender equity inside first year experience programs

Thesis (M.A., Education (Behavioral Sciences Gender Equity Studies))-- California State University, Sacramento, 2013.The purpose of this work was to survey First Year Experience (FYE) faculty of two California State Universities in Northern California about their understanding of gender equitable instructional methods, use of curriculum focused on gender, and their discussion of gender in FYE courses. The study also measured the number of hours faculty spent in professional development trainings on particular subjects. The study focused on the following questions: What are the First Year Experience professors??? understandings of gender equitable teaching approaches in the classroom? Do First Year Experience professors incorporate gender equitable instructional methods into the required courses of the first year programs? What training, if any, has the professors who teach the First Year Experience courses received on gender equity in the classroom? Additionally, does the faculty discuss gender, specifically sexism, in the FYE courses? If so, what curriculum do they use? \ud \ud Sources of Data \ud Twenty-nine professors from two California State University campuses in Northern California participated in this study. Convenience and snowball sampling was employed to obtain participants for survey research methods. The questionnaire was designed to elicit both quantitative and qualitative data from participants. The close-ended questions provided quantitative data to conduct statistical analysis. The open-ended questions provided qualitative data used to determine themes within instructors??? attitudes and beliefs about gender equitable teaching strategies and their use of these strategies in the First Year Experience courses. \ud Conclusions Reached\ud The results of this study run parallel to similar studies conducted on this topic (Carinci, 2002; Olivieri, 2011). The awareness level of gender equitable teaching strategies of this sample was significantly higher than research indicated, however the amount of time invested in equitable teaching strategies was exceedingly low. The results indicated the least number of respondents were trained in gender equitable teaching methods, with only 8 out of 29 instructors. FYE faculty spent a total of 32 hours, averaging 1.10 hours per participant. \ud Awareness, attitudes and beliefs about gender equitable teaching strategies were relatively positive overall. This data indicated to the researcher that this particular sample holds a high regard and respect for the equitable teaching methods, however uneducated they may be on the topics. A lack of awareness among the faculty showed up through the large number of non-responses overall when the questions discussed equitable teaching strategies. Of the respondents who were aware of the methods, a small number understood the purpose of equitable teaching methods and types of strategies. Continual training for faculty should not only occur inside the First Year Experience programs but across all disciplines and programs. \ud An extremely low number of instructors discuss issues of sexism in their FYE courses. Nearly 35% (10 out of 29 instructors) of the sample does not currently teach about issues of sexism in their FYE courses. This passive behavior from the faculty runs parallel to the attitudes thirty years ago about discussing issues of racism (Campbell, 2000; Carinci, 2002). Just as racism is more than violent acts, or stereotyping whole groups of minorities or prejudice; sexism and racism both work systematically to keep minorities and women at ???the bottom of the social and economic order??? (Campbell, 2000, p. 69). When instructors dismiss these issues, they are sending a signal to the first year students that these important social justice issues do not occur in college or in our society. Education is the key to alleviating gender inequities and the first year student deserve to have content on how to become social justice advocates.Education (Behavioral Sciences Gender Equity Studies