Reader Stance and a Focus on Gender Differences

Abstract

The purpose of this paper, drawing data from a large research base, was to investigate how and why Taiwanese EFL (English as a Foreign Language) male and female university students responded to feminist texts differently. These participants were taking an elective course titled Gender and Reading while this research was conducted. Weekly reading journal entries were used for data analysis. Idea units were first used to categorize participants' journal entries; relevant idea units were grouped together, and then organized into stances for discussion. Four stances--textual, evaluative, reflective, and resistant--were generated for interpretation. Comparative content analysis was then applied to contrast male and female participants' stances while responding to feminist texts. Some pedagogical implications are suggested for classroom practice.