Gender Differences in the Cognitive, Physical-Motor, Language and Literacy skills, Approach to Learning and Social-Behavioral-Emotional skills of 3 to 4 year old children in Tehran

Background &

Assessing gender differences in early childhood helps us to understand them in later life. Today, many thinkers consider the years before elementary school to be the most fruitful years for teaching and learning and believe that a young child learns at a faster rate than he will be able to later, and his early mental connections and associations are so stable that they do not last in the following years. The growth process of Iranian children is examined by non-Iranian standards, and due to the difference between Iranian standards and the standards of other countries, it will be difficult to judge Iranian children, a mistake in judgment can have irreparable consequences. After the embryonic period, the physical and mental development of children in the ages after birth is very important; Because the most physical and mental changes happen at this age, which, if neglected, will lead to irreparable results; Therefore, paying attention to children's growth is one of the first priorities. Previous research shows significant gender differences in psychomotor development, albeit on a small scale and with significant heterogeneity. Girls develop earlier and have better language skills than boys in most language domains (phonics, vocabulary, and syntax), which may disappear between 3 and 5 years of age. Girls have also been found to exhibit more fine motor skills—that is, activities that require high precision and usually involve manipulating objects. Up to 4 years old or after 6 to 7 years. No clear picture emerges from studies on gender differences in motor skills—that is, activities related to movement and trunk movement—in the preschool period. Assessing sex differences in early childhood helps us understand them later in life. Today, many thinkers consider the years before elementary school to be the most fruitful years for teaching and learning. Preschool children show rapid growth in motor, cognitive, and social-emotional skills; therefore, the assessment of gender differences in early childhood is very important in making decisions. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to investigate gender differences in developmental standards of cognitive, physical-motor, language, and literacy skills, approach to learning, and social-behavioral-emotional.

The present research method is practical in terms of its purpose and in terms of data collection (research design) it is descriptive and non-experimental and the data were collected without any intervention or control. The statistical population includes all 3-4-year-old children in Tehran. The sample of the current research is 50 girls (50%) and 50 boys (50%) and their teachers and parents, which was obtained through cluster and matrix sampling in kindergartens. Twenty children were selected from five geographical regions according to the economic, social, and cultural characteristics of Tehran, including northwest and east, southwest and east, and the center (regions 3, 5, 6, 14, 16). The data collection tool includes scales for measuring the developmental capabilities of cognitive, language, and literacy, approach to learning, physical-motor, social-behavioral-emotional skills of 3 to 4 year old children, which were developed using the standards available in different countries. This scale measures five dimensions of cognitive skills (65 questions), physical-motor skills (25 questions), language and literacy (54 questions), approach to learning (27 questions), and social-behavioral-emotional dimension (24 questions). Information analysis method. In this research, descriptive statistics (mean and standard deviation), the Shapiro-Wilk test, one-way analysis of variance test, Cronbach's alpha, and Pearson's correlation coefficient were used.

The findings showed that, from a theoretical point of view, this research will contribute to the development of knowledge about children's developmental standards. In terms of measurement tools and methods, this project is the first attempt to create a multidimensional tool that allows measuring the developmental standards of 3 to 4-year-old children, and practically, this research is useful for preparing preschool children in the early stages and evaluating them in the next stage. It will be informative.

The results of this study are used by preschool school officials and educational policymakers. Mental skills or cognitive abilities include features such as perception, attention, memory (short-term or working and long-term), motor, language, visual and spatial processing, and executive functions. These cognitive characteristics are different in men and women. In general, women excel in verbal fluency, perceptual speed, accuracy, and fine motor skills, while men excel in spatial, working memory, and math abilities. Male and female brains show anatomical, functional, and biochemical differences throughout life. Many factors are involved in this distinction. Physiological factors, along with social norms, are other factors that cause changes. Men perform better than women on tests of visual-spatial ability and mathematical reasoning, while women perform better on memory and language use. Raising standards in children's writing is a current educational priority, and the apparent resistance of boys to efforts to improve their writing skills has received particular attention. Recent UK figures have reported that 15-19% of girls, after leaving UK primary schools, have achieved the expected standard of writing by the age of 11. This is supported by consistent evidence of female advantage in various national assessments of writing performance. The findings of this research have positive implications for theory, methodology, and practice. Theoretically, this research will help to advance the production of knowledge about children's developmental standards. In terms of measurement tools and methods, this project is the first attempt to create a multidimensional tool that allows measuring the developmental standards of 3-4-year-old children. Practically, this research will be useful and informative for the preparation of preschool children in the early stages and evaluation in the next stage.