The issue of gender differences in education is extremely important for educators. It enables them to recognise the different needs and wants of students because they are independent individuals. It is apparent that students are influenced by many factors when their gender role is taken into consideration. Some of these are believed to be constructed and reconstructed by the educational systems and that they take different forms. Examples of these are the school organisation, the curriculum and the attitude of teachers. The issue of the construction and reconstruction of gender differences is important to be investigated in all countries in the world. This dissertation traces this issue from a Chinese culture point of view. A case study was carried out in the Taipei Montessori School in Taiwan. Its aim was to look into the construction and reconstruction of gender differences in the early years of schooling and to bring an awareness of this important issue to the teachers, particularly their attitude towards male and female students. The investigation was carried out by means of observations and interviews. The observations took place in two Montessori classrooms with a sample population of thirty children in each classroom. The teachers of both classrooms were interviewed after the observations with an aim to explore their opinions on the issue. The finding of the indicate very clearly that the curriculum in Montessori schools is not gender based and children are encouraged to be involved in activities regardless of their gender. In some cases they were in fact encouraged to undertake activities that are considered unsuitable for their gender. A striking finding shows that parents need to change their gender perceptions in order to co-operate with the school and to help in the success of the process of equal opportunity for girls in the work market in the future.
