女性不擅长理科的十大原因(下)

View Science in a Rigid Way

5.科学给人的固有印象

When we think of the word "science," it is likely that images of beakers, oversized goggles and blown up images of cells beneath a microscope are conjured. In reality, the field of science is much broader than the biological and chemical components. As noted by The Guardian:

当我们想到"科学"二字，脑海里就会蹦出烧杯、大框架眼镜还有显微镜下的细胞等诸如此类的画面，但实际上科学范畴十分宽泛，不仅仅是生物和化学元素。《卫报》指出：

"'Science' is not just something taught at school. Teachers at a science conference in New York a couple of years ago said that while girls are increasingly resistant to the idea of "science" as a standalone subject when they reach middle school, they are invariably receptive and energetic students when the same scientific principles are presented to them as 'social studies'. The weather forecast, climate change, what we eat, illnesses and allergies, methods of transportation, the electronics that fill your house – are all areas of science that surround your daughter. Scientific theory fires her imagination when connected to current or domestic affairs, or when she can empathize." Furthermore, there are several degrees within the field of "science" that create more of a draw for women. Women looking to become dietitians will study a variety of scientific principles and many women who enter the field of health education receive a Health Science degree. The curriculum for these types of degrees involves a confection of sciences that blend psychological and emotional principles, which are often more appealing to women, hence the prevalence of female nurses, dietitians and teachers.

"科学不只是在学校里学的那些。"几年前在纽约科学研讨会上的老师如是说。刚刚踏入中学的女生越来越反对"科学是一门独立学科"的观点，把科学理论作为"社会研究"教给她们时，她们都无一例外地充满了好奇与激情。天气预报、气候变幻、食物、疾病、过敏症、交通工具、家用电器都属于科学，都和您女儿生活息息相关，只要她关注这些大大小小的事情并心领神会，科学理论便能点燃她想象。与此同时，一些科学范畴的学位也会吸引到女性。立志成为营养师的女性就会研习大量科学知识，而很多接受健康教育的女性最终也取得了健康科学学位。这些学位涉及一系列课程的研究，包括心理学、情感学，这都是女性的兴趣点，所以，才有了女护士、女营养师及女教师的崛起。

are On Both Ends of the Bell curve

4.处于钟形曲线两端的男人

For every man that demonstrates superiority and the upmost in excellence when it comes to math skills, there is another one that may incur a panic attack at the very sight of an integer.

每一个在数学上展现超凡才华的男人，都有一个一看见数字就惊慌失措的男人与其对应。

At least that's what some have argued while debating the reasons for men garnering the top spots when it comes to mathematics and science professions. According to PsyBlog, "The argument has been that these talented individuals who lie at the extreme end of the bell-curve distribution of mathematical ability are more often men. It's this extra talent at the extreme high end of ability that is thought to account for the fact that men dominate in fields that require advanced maths skills." Still, several other noted studies have shown little difference between male and female mathematical ability overall, which leads researchers to believe that—you guessed it—environmental factors such as cultural bias and stereotypes are the main culprits leading to the disparities between men and women within mathematics and science fields.

至少有人在讨论男人在理工类职业的领先地位时，会给出这样的解释。据心理博客称：这种说法认为，"盘踞在数学能力钟形曲线两端的天才大多是男性"。正是这种位及两端的能力，使他们在需要高端数学能力的领域中一统天下。但其他几项研究还发现了一些男女整体数学水平的差异，因此研究人员还有一个观点，你可能已经猜到了：引起男女在理工类领域中差异的主要原因是环境因素，如文化歧视、刻板印象等。

le Feel Mathematical Ability is Innate

3.人们认为数学的能力是与生俱来的

Both men and women have questioned whether genetics are at play when it comes to math and science skills. A piece by Miles Kimball and Noah Smith in The Atlantic, however, cites the authors' personal experiences and various studies that negate any theories regarding math being an innate ability.

所有人都怀疑基因是否影响理科能力。然而，迈尔斯·金伯儿和诺亚·史密斯在《大西洋月刊》刊载了一篇文章，文章借鉴了他们的自身经历和各项研究结果，最后证明：所谓数学能力并非与生俱来。

Furthermore, Kimball and Smith note that mathematics taught in high schools do not require the type of genius that is evident in such anomalies like Terence Tao, a "virtuoso mathematician" whose ability probably surpasses most women's and men's. "Essentially none of us could ever be as good at math as Terence Tao, no matter how hard we tried or how well we were taught. But here's the thing: We don't have to! For high-school math, inborn talent is much less important than hard work, preparation, and self-confidence." Indeed, the general math classes offered in schools are not intended for prodigies—if that were the case, there would be nary a student passing SATs and moving on to college. However, the stereotypes and self fulfilling prophecies that continue to abound on math, gender and genetics could possibly dismantle the strides made by would-be prodigies—particularly if they are female.

迈尔斯·金伯儿和诺亚·史密斯还指出：吸收中学那点数学知识并不需要如陶哲然那般的天分。陶哲然是一位数学天才，他的数学能力是许多男男女女不能企及的。"而且，无论我们多努力，老师教的有多好，我们都不可能像陶哲然一样出色。更重要的是，我们也不需要比他好，在高中数学里，努力学习，课前准备，自信，这三样比天分重要得多了。"当然，学校里那点数学知识也不是为奇才准备的，如果有特例，即使那个学生没有通过标准成绩考试（SATs），也会被送去上大学。然后，那些陈旧观念、自我实现预期仍在泛滥，而性别和基因之说也可能使未来的天才们望而却步——特别是一些人的性别还为"女"。

hers Treat Male and Female Students Differently in Math and Science

2.教师在理工课堂进行男女差别对待

The job of a teacher is to nurture the minds of students and provide guidance to help them grow and excel in both their scholastic and professional careers. Unfortunately, when it comes to the existent gender biases within math and science, some teachers may be unconsciously perpetuating stereotypes along with everyone else.

教师的职责是培养学生的心智，提供指导帮助学生成长，使他们在学术研究和工作中得心应手。不幸的是，当涉及数学和科学时，却存在性别偏见，有的老师可能会不自觉地和其他人一样陷入思维定式。

In the article Twenty Reasons Girls Don't Like Math, it is noted that a study by associate professor of psychology at the University of Chicago, Sian L. Beilock, "…suggests that female teachers anxious about their math skills pass on their anxieties to their female students. The more the teacher lacked confidence in her math skills, the more the female students adapted her insecure mentality." It doesn't stop there. A recent article from Smithsonian took note of these pernicious attitudes in classrooms by citing results of a study published in the National Bureau of Economic Research. "In math, the girls outscored the boys in the exam graded anonymously, but the boys outscored the girls when graded by teachers who knew their names. The effect was not the same for tests on other subjects, like English and Hebrew. The researchers concluded that in math and science, the teachers overestimated the boys' abilities and underestimated the girls', and that this had long-term effects on students' attitudes toward the subjects." More disconcerting was the fact that all teachers noted in the study were women themselves, demonstrating just how pervasive these biases have become (or perhaps have always been).

《女生不喜欢数学的二十个理由》一文中提到芝加哥大学心理学副教授希安·贝洛克的一项研究。"研究表明，怀疑自己的数学能力的女教师会把她们这种忧虑传染给她们的女学生。老师越是对自己的数学能力缺乏信心，和她一样不自信的女学生就越多。这还不是终点。通过引用国家经济研究局的一项研究结果，史密斯最近的一篇文章也指出了这种课堂态度的害处。"如果女孩分数更高，老师通常都不知道她们的名字，而如果是男生分数更高，老师都知道学生的名字。而其他科目则不是这样，如英语和希伯来语的测试。"研究人员得出结论，在理工类科目上，老师高估了男孩子们的能力而低估了女孩，而教师这种判断会对学生对理科的态度产生长期影响。更令人不安的事实是，上述很多老师都是女老师，证明这些偏见是多么普遍（或者也许一直是这样）。

Tell Us So

1.玩具的暗示

There may be no greater toy to perpetuate stereotypes and sustain archaic gender roles than Barbie. In 1992, Mattel released Teen Talk Barbie, a gaudily dressed (I mean, weren't they all pretty gaudy?) platinum blonde bubblegum pop girly, who would actually talk to you at the push of a button. This Barbie offered a slew of profound musings, such as: "Math class is tough!" "Party dresses are fun!" and "Do you have a crush on anyone?"

在延续陈旧观念和维持传统的性别分工中，没有什么比芭比娃娃做的更好了。 1992年，美泰推出会说话的青少年芭比娃娃，这款娃娃是一个穿着浮夸（我的意思是，难道他们的穿着不是都非常艳丽吗？），留着铂金长发，并深受儿童喜爱的少女，当你按下按钮她就会和你对话。这个芭比娃娃能说出许多"意义深刻"的话，比如"数学课是很难的"，"舞会礼服是乐趣"和"你爱上过别人吗"？

As an aside, I'd like to note that I actually had one of these dolls at the age of seven, and I am currently wondering if she had anything to do with all the red "Xs" I received when attempting to learn long division. Thanks a lot, Barbie! Oh, and I did have a crush on someone then, and according to Facebook he's married to someone now who isn't me. Whomp whomp! Anyway, in a hilarious twist of fate, the Barbie Liberation Organization (which is apparently a thing that exists) "…tinkered with the circuit boards of Barbie dolls and GI Joe dolls…so that Barbie cried, 'Vengeance is mine!' and GI Joe said, 'Let's plan our dream wedding.' This message spoke loud and clear to toy producers all over the world." On a more serious note, an aforementioned article expands on the fact that the introduction of certain toys can be the first steps in creating a gender divide when it comes to pursuits within the fields of math and science. "Toddler boys tinker and toy, while toddler girls are handed dolls. While this has steadily declined over the years, we still face a generation of young learners that believed Lincoln Logs, Legos, racing cars, and simple machines are the tinkering toys for boys, and dolls and coloring books are the artistic toys for girls. Research on the sociological differences in raising young girls and boys suggests that we hand toys to boys that get them revved for math lessons right from the start, while young girls enter the classroom without this upper hand." There you have it. Perhaps trading a Barbie for a toy truck or a GI Joe for a coloring book every now and again can create some balance.

顺便说一句，事实上我7岁时也有一个芭比娃娃。近来我在想，她和我在学习乘除法时得到的红叉是否有关。我谢谢你啊芭比！我的确喜欢过一个人，然而从他的脸谱网来看，他结婚的对象却不是我! 心塞!不管怎样，在极度扭曲的命运中，芭比解放组织（这显然是一个真实存在的事物）"……将特种部队玩偶的电路板与芭比娃娃互换……使芭比娃娃哭喊着，'我要复仇！'而特种部队玩偶说，'让我们规划梦想中的婚礼。' 这条消息声音响亮并让全球的玩具制造商都听清了。"更严重的是，上述文章中延伸出了一个事实，当涉及到理工类科目时，推出某些玩具是创造性别鸿沟的第一步。"小男孩的玩具是自己做的，而小女孩的娃娃是大人给的。虽然这种状况多年来已稳步减少，面对年青一代我们仍然相信林肯日志，积木，赛车及简单的机器是男生该摆弄的玩具，娃娃和涂色本是女孩的玩具。一项关于培养女孩和男孩的社会差异的研究表明，我们将玩具交给男孩使他们一开始就在数学上努力，而女孩进入学校时却没有这种优势。"到这你该明白了。也许偶尔将芭比娃娃换成玩具卡车或将图画书换成特种部队玩偶可以创建一些平衡。

审校：西瓜 编辑：listen 来源：前十网