Page 117 - The Creative Training Idea Book Inspired Tips and Techniques for Engaging and Effective Learning

lucas chap 03 11/20/02 11:46 AM Page 106
106 The Creative Training Idea Book
Because this topic is far too complex to adequately address in this small section of
the book, I encourage you to visit your local library and the Internet to research it in
depth. There are also a number of books on the issue of gender communication cited
in the Resources for Trainers section of the appendices.
A key gender issue that has surfaced in research is that men and women listen and
communicate differently. There is a physiological difference in the structure of the
brain in men and women that often leads to women taking in and attempting to
process multiple signals and pieces of information while men often filter out back-
ground noise or input and focus on one issue. These differences and approaches to
communication can sometimes lead to frustration, confusion, and even relationship
breakdown.
Deborah Tannen, John Gray, and many others have written numerous books and
articles on the way in which men and women listen and communicate. According to
Tannen, women often listen for more emotional or rapport type messages, as well as for
details. On the other hand, men often want the bottom line and listen for report type
of information, such as facts, figures, or specifics. These differences in the classroom add
the need for you to provide a variety of information in differing formats to address the
needs of all of your participants. For example, you might pass out a fact sheet for the
bottom-line people while telling an embellished story that gives background informa-
tion related to the handout for the detail-oriented people.

PUTTING YOUR BRAIN TO WORK: ACTIVITY

Think of situations in which you were interacting with someone from the opposite gender and you
encountered message breakdown.

Did their listening and communication style differ from yours? If so, in what ways?

What challenges or complications did these differences create?

In retrospect, how did or could you have overcome the challenges?

How can you apply lessons learned in that situation to your classroom?

Communication does not begin with being understood, but with
understanding others.
—W. Steven Brown