Social positioning in boys’ and girls’ oral presentations

Abstract

This study explores ninth-grade (15-year-old) students’ oral presentations in language arts and art education. The main research question is: In which ways are the students’ social positioning and use of verbal and non-verbal resources reflected in boys’ and girls’ oral presentations? In-depth analyses of video recordings of student presentations indicate some gender differences. The girls show enthusiasm and engagement and are, generally speaking, better prepared during oral presentations. The boys are more dependent on their manuscripts, and perform in a descriptive and detached manner. We argue that some of these differences can be explained by the students’ attempts to maintain their social positions in class.