Teachers' gendered expectations and their evaluation of student writing

The 94 participating teachers had marked narrative writing for either the t hird-grade, sixth-grade or ninth-grade provincial achievement examinations in July 1995 and/or July 1996. Questionnaire and interview data revealed th at teachers attempted to ignore the influence of gender perceptions in orde r to foreground the individual's self-expression and to ensure equality for all individuals in their assessment of student narrative writing. In spite of their efforts, teachers did construct the writer's gender while reading student narratives, however. Once constructed, these gender preceptions na rrowed the lenses through which teachers assessed the writing, allowing for the perpetuation of gender stereotypes and the inequalities they create.