Are kids better off with teachers of their own gender?

A new study that found boys learn more from male teachers and girls learn more from female teachers is certain to create a firestorm of controversy. The implications are staggering, particularly in light of the fact that the proportion of male teachers in the U.S. is at its lowest level in 40 years - about 20 percent.
The author, Thomas Dee, an associate professor of economics at Swarthmore and visiting scholar at Stanford, also found that gender influences attitudes. With female teachers, boys were more likely to be seen as disruptive and girls were less likely to to be considered inattentive or disorderly. In classes taught by men, girls were more likely to say the subject was not useful for their future. They were less likely to look forward to the class or to ask questions.
Looking back at my own school days, the three teachers and professors I liked best were male - a journalism teacher and professor and a political science professor. The two I liked least were women. They also were tough graders.