< EditItemTemplate>
<asp:DropDownList ID="ddlGender" runat="server" >
<asp:ListItem Text="male" Value="male" />
<asp:ListItem Text="female" Value="female" />
</asp:DropDownList>
</EditItemTemplate>
then use
<code>
DropDownList DdlGender = (DropDownList)row.FindControl("ddlGender");
string Gender = DdlGender.SelectedValue.ToString();
now you can use gender