Rating: 
Summary: "The Restoration of Balance"
Review: The age-old battle between Nature and Nurture has been brought by the politically correct of the recent past to a premature and lopsided conclusion. Hence gender is widely viewed as wholly a social construction. With more than enough evidence to back him up, Gurian wisely dissents from such simplicity. While retaining full awareness of the role of culture in shaping us, he restores attention to our anterior hard-wiring by nature, which we ignore, he argues, only at our peril. Gurian's latest work is a healthy corrective to certain biases which flourish within the educational establishment; it should be read with seriousness by parents and teachers who have no agenda other than wanting the best education for children of both sexes.
Rating: 
Summary: Conclusions too premature
Review: The difference in math skills between boys and girls is tiny. It's also not found until adolescence (until then, girls do better in math than boys). Recent evidence suggests that the difference in adolescence may be due to iron-deficiency anemia, which strikes when girls start menstruating. Saying that boys are "naturally" better than girls at math prevents girls from going into money-making careers. Similarly with spatial relations -- some studies have found that girls who participate in sports as much as boys perform as well as boys in spatial relations. We learn spatial relations from improving our physical skills (kind of obvious, if you think of it). There's no good evidence that the difference in spatial relations is inherent. People who write these sex differences books need to look at the LATEST evidence. Since men currently make significantly more money than women and go into more prestigious careers, any defending of the status quo (through saying that these differences are "inherent") will benefit men and boys, not women and girls.
Rating: 
Summary: Little of Substance
Review: The first part of the book is unbearably slow, the gender differences of boys and girls are painstakingly boiled down into a litany of "boys excel at..., girls excel at. The list that everybody has heard, sports and spatial tasks = boys, penmanship, language skills = girls. The saving grace of this book is that in the 2nd part the author mentions what should actually be done. Michael Gurian, author/ educator, also has a few pilot projects being run in the state of Missouri. The results sound encouraging. He encourages teachers to start catering to the needs of both genders in the class. He stresses that to do this teachers will need training. As for parents the usual "be a concerned and supportive parent" is always added. I was generally unimpressed with the book, no real blockbusters. The real world results of his pilot education programs were to me the issue that maybe the author was onto something. Hopefully if it is as good as its portrayed this method will gain some notoriety.
Rating: 
Summary: Buy the book -- not the audiobook
Review: This author has much to say, but the limitations of a 2-cassette abridgment make it difficult to learn much from this audiobook. Consequently, it is just an introduction, an overview, and lacks enough concrete examples to make significant changes to your teaching. Still, because I know there is much value here, I would recommend that either you buy the book instead of the audiobook or try the audiobook first and then read the book. Not to say I agree with everything here. The suggestion to improve teaching calculus to girls with journaling is laughable. I do notice that when I was teaching algebra to girls, it helped if I said the equations in plain speech; that is, instead of saying y=x, I said y is the same as x, and the light dawned. As for the reader, I recognized the dulcet tones of Jonathan Marosz immediately. He must have to use an alias when he records for different publishers. He does an excellent job, and his voice carries a lot of authority.
Rating:
Summary: A Must for All Teachers and Parents
Review: This book is a MUST for current teachers, parents, and anyone working with children of ALL ages. This book will help the reader understand how brain research has and should be included in every certified teacher curriculum materials. This "textbook" should be provided for in-service instruction for current teachers, child care workers, parents, guardians, mentors, tutors, and ANY one working with children. The MI (Multiple Intelligences) approach is still valid and is in fact relied on by many to answer the age old question: "How do Boys and Girls Learn? What are the differences in learning styles." By taking your knowledge regarding MI and include the latest reserach on brain research, the child in your life will benefit and you too will feel like you are making the difference in the life of a child. Go get the book, read it, then apply that knowledge within the classroom, home, church, day care, and anywhere/anyone working with children. DG
Rating: 
Summary: This is sooo... dated
Review: This book promotes stereotypes by radically overstating some slight differences between the sexes. If you want a scientific explanation of how they are grossly misrepresenting science, read either:
1) Brain Gender by Melissa Hines (2004) or
2) The esssential difference: the truth about the male and female brain by Simon Baron-Cohen (2003).
Rating:
Summary: Do your child a favor - give the teacher a copy!
Review: This book resonates with "a ha's"-those rare moments when something you've just read makes such perfect sense you can actually feel it. What I like is the way Gurian blends brain-based research & classroom observation so the reader really can understand the neurological differences in boys & girls that drive their learning & behavior patterns. The extraordinary value in the book is that Gurian provides dozens of suggestions & real-life examples for teachers & parents to nurture a child's intellectual, emotional & creative development. Gurian's book offers valuable & practical insights spanning preschool through high school so I suspect my copy will be dog-eared from frequent use over the next 10 years. Do yourself -and your child-a favor: give this book to your child's teachers & encourage your school district to develop teaching standards that recognize & reflect the fact that boys & girls learn differently. Teachers, kids & parents will all benefit.
Rating:
Summary: Do your child a favor - give the teacher a copy!
Review: This book resonates with "a ha's"-those rare moments when something you've just read makes such perfect sense you can actually feel it. What I like is the way Gurian blends brain-based research & classroom observation so the reader really can understand the neurological differences in boys & girls that drive their learning & behavior patterns. The extraordinary value in the book is that Gurian provides dozens of suggestions & real-life examples for teachers & parents to nurture a child's intellectual, emotional & creative development. Gurian's book offers valuable & practical insights spanning preschool through high school so I suspect my copy will be dog-eared from frequent use over the next 10 years. Do yourself -and your child-a favor: give this book to your child's teachers & encourage your school district to develop teaching standards that recognize & reflect the fact that boys & girls learn differently. Teachers, kids & parents will all benefit.
Rating:
Summary: Hey! Why don't we go to a teacher when we're sick, too.
Review: This guy needs to stop flattering himself. He isn't controversial or innovative. He is merely stupid.
The idea that some education or pysch major is going to have something important to say about biology is laughable. It is clear he didn't take (because he couldn't pass) Biology 101. Kind of goes against he's theories doesn't it.
I (a physician) found his references to hormones and neuroanatomy comical. A failing pre-med knows more than he does! He states something about the hormones maturing faster in girls. Well, last time I checked, the structure of various hormones was constant. The hormones themselves don't change a bit. No one who had the slightest inkling of what they were talking about would refer to this is such terms.
This guy is just projecting his social agenda on a bunch of biological terms he doesn't understand. The only people who would fall for this are those who a)know less than he does and b) have the same agenda.
Rating:
Summary: boys and girls learn differently
Review: This is an important book especially for educators and parents. It is essential that we are aware of the skills necessary to teach both boys and girls effectively. This book outlines in practical ways to achieve this goal. This book shows the depth and knowledge of the author that he portrayed in his other writings.
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