Gender Differences in Citizenship Behavior Among the Iranian Elementary School Students

AbstractThe purpose of present research was to determine the degree of citizenship skills among elementary school students. This applied research used descriptive survey. Statistical population consisted all 5th grade elementary school students in district No. 8 of Tehran (N=5500). Sample population based on Morgan Table was n=770 for male and female together, selected through classified random sampling. Instrumentation for collecting data was a researcher designed questionnaire that measured four categories of citizenship skills, creative thinking, namely social skills, cognitive skill and democratic value skills. The questionnaire contained 50 items with two level scales. Validity of the instrument was determined by the literature and reviewed by experts and the reliability was measured by use of Alph Crohbach, alpha=0.81. Data collected was analyzed by use of descriptive statistics, central tendency measure such as mean and standard deviation, as well as inferential statistics by use of one-tale test, and Variance. The results revealed that there was a meaningful difference between the degree of citizenship skills of male and female students. Male elementary students in the study showed to have a higher degree of citizenship skills. All together, both male and female students, however, showed to be in a desirable situation in terms of the skills required at this age of schooling. The study recommends a more detailed inspection of curricula regarding the competencies required to be a good citizen among female students