A recent study (1) indicates that young males learn better under male teachers than under female teachers. On the other hand, an Australian study (2) has countered that belief.

I think what's missing from the report is the subject being taught and the gender of the teacher. For example, if one is studying male reproductive organs I suspect that male students would tend to be more disruptive in class with a female teacher than a male teacher.

However, a female teacher like the one at the top of this post would make it very hard [pun intended] to concentrate on almost any subject in hand [yes, yes, another pun].

On the other hand [no pun intended], this leads to over-reaction as reported by

Feministing,
School makes female teachers wear aprons

Women teachers at a school in the Indian city of Bhubaneswar have been told to wear aprons so that senior male students do not get distracted by their bodies, Indian newspapers reported Tuesday.

"The unconscious exposure of a body by a lady teacher during teaching could be an object of amusement for male students inside the classroom," K.C. Satpathy, the principal of DAV Public School, was quoted in The Times of India newspaper as saying.

"By wearing an apron, the quality of teaching could improve."

There is one area though, in which having females present can be highly instructive from a pedagogic point of view: in explaining certain business practices.

For example, very few students in economics have a clear understanding of advertising, marketing, public relations or branding. To many, these all seem to blend into one blurry notion of product promotion. However, the following will demonstrate the fine distinctions among them. Without the use of a female, these concepts cannot be so clearly differentiated.

With a tip of the turban to The O'Byrne File:

This Guide outlines all the basic techniques you'll ever need to know about advertising vs. marketing.

Now pay attention at the back of the class, kill the lights, let the slide-show begin...

Slide #1: You see a gorgeous lass at a party. You go up to her and say: "I'm great in the sack."

That's called DIRECT MARKETING.

Slide #2: You're at a party with a bunch of friends and see a gorgeous dish. One of your female friends goes up to her and, pointing at you, says: "See that guy there? He's great in the sack."

That's called ADVERTISING.

Slide #3: You see a hot number at a party. You go up to her and get her telephone number. The next day you call and say: "Hi, I'm great in the sack."

That's called TELEMARKETING.

Slide #4: You're at a party and see a delicious creature. You get up and straighten your tie. You walk up to her and pour her a drink. You open the door for her, pick up her bag after she drops it, offer her a lift, and then say: "Oh, by the way, I'm great in the sack."

That's called PUBLIC RELATIONS.

Slide #5: You're at a party and see a sweet young thing. She walks up to you and says, "I hear you're great in the sack."

That's something called BRAND RECOGNITION.

Slide #6: Finally, You're in bed with this tasty tart when she purrs sensually in your ear: "Damn, you really are great in the sack!"

That's called PRODUCT PLACEMENT.

Of course none of this matters in Islam since Islamic Republics dispense with female teachers as well as female students. Problem solved.

ENDNOTES

(1):

Edutopia, The Edutopia Poll

A recent study slated for publication in the quarterly journal Education Next has generated headlines nationwide. "The Why Chromosome: How a Teacher's Gender Affects Boys and Girls," by Thomas Dee, associate professor at Swarthmore College and visiting scholar at Stanford University, suggests that a significant correlation exists between the gender of the teacher and the success of the student -- that is, girls learn more from women and boys learn more from men.

(2):

National Literacy Trust, Boys don't learn better with male teachers, says study

A major Australian study has countered the belief that having more male teachers in secondary schools improves boys' academic achievement. Almost 1000 students in Years 8 and 10 at high schools in New South Wales (NSW) and the Australian Capital Territory were surveyed by Andrew Martin and Herbert Marsh from the University of Western Sydney.

In their report, Motivating boys and motivating girls: Does teaching gender really make a difference?, the academics concluded: "Contrary to popular argument that boys fare better under male teachers, it was found that there existed no such significant interaction between student gender and teacher gender. The only significant interaction that emerged was that girls reported a better relationship with female teachers than with male teachers, while boys reported fairly similar relationships.