Gender Diversity

Issues surrounding the gender diversity of the Texas Teachers’ force are generally explored as part of the broader topic of gender equity. Gender equity focuses on the need for greater equity in teacher behavior towards students in the classroom and to foster higher achievement by female students, especially in mathematics and science. Increasing the number of female Texas Teachers in mathematics and science is both advocated as a strategy to increase equitable treatment of females in these disciplines and predicted as a contributor to higher achievement by females.

The need to increase the number of male Texas Teachers in schools is another facet of gender diversity. Men are under-represented in the teaching force overall, and especially in certain disciplines and grade levels. When combined with under-representation of racial and ethnic minorities in the teaching force, severe shortages result in some areas.

The ability to relate to students can have direct academic consequences for the students. For instance, studies have found that white teachers are more likely to assign Hispanic students to special education classes than they would similarly achieving white students. Texas Teachers’ studies also show a disproportionate number of African American students assigned to special education classes. Studies also show that Hispanic teachers are less likely to misdiagnose language difficulties as learning disabilities.