It is clear that the children in Jill’s classroom (please see scenario tab) are influenced by negative views and confusion around gender equity and sexuality. MacNaughton (2000, p. 21) explains that children’s ideas of identity (including gender and sexuality) are developed through social interactions, whether inside or outside school. An educator must be a positive advocate of gender equity and sexuality in order to influence positive ideas of gender equality to their students. The Melbourne Declaration outlines its focus of providing an equal experience for all children regardless of gender or sexuality, and educators must be an advocate of this equality (Ministerial Council on Education, Employment, Training and Youth Affairs, 2008, pg. …show more content…
Take this video by Pea (2012) for example. Pea (2012) highlights the misconceptions children can acquire from storybooks. While books like the ones witnessed in this video seem innocent, there are views in these books, which encourage gender stereotypes and, also sexist views. Opinions that children develop from reading these books can contribute to situations as described in Jill’s class where the boys were dominating the computers in her classroom. MacNaughton (2000, p. 19) mentions the importance of avoiding stereotypical activities and materials that influence negative gender stereotypes, which are often based off traditional views. An example of this is the pink and blue decorations Jill’s colleagues use to hang their girls and boys work. Teachers also need to ensure they are providing an equal classroom experience to all children regardless of sex. Research has uncovered that educators tend to praise and encourage, and give male students more opportunity (Skelton, Francis & Smulyan, 2006, pp. 431-432). Furthermore, behaviours displayed by girls that are seen as ‘disruptive’, ‘rude’, and ‘aggressive’ are often viewed as ‘assertive’, and ‘aspiring’ when displayed by boys (Skelton et al., 2006, pp. 442). Such interactions are not setting a positive example for gender equality in the classroom. A teacher needs to consider this when assuming students capabilities based on gender, and instead provide an equal experience to all students. Educators also need to review the materials they use in the classroom to ensure they are used appropriately to discuss and encourage positive views on
Nontraditional gender socialisation can help the child develop a more complete understanding of their personality, that takes both their feminine traits and masculine traits into consideration. This can be illustrated by Jeremy telling his mother that he got to be “a complete person” (Bem, 1998, p. 190), when asked how his upbringing enhanced his life. Further this type of parenting allows the child to be more analytical of traditional gender roles and how they might be present and potentially affect their lives. This can make them more aware of them, and could help them avoid or fight against negative effects that might arise from their presents. This can often be advantageous. Bem educated her children about traditional gender roles and their negative aspects, like sexism, and through this allowed them to have the tools to identify them early on, like Emily did in nursery school (Bem, 1998, p. 119-120). When children are being educated about traditional gender roles and their disadvantages they have an easier time identifying them later on and possibly fighting
Though they may be conscious of this, it is high likely that male children and teenagers are picking up the predator/prey mindset through their peers as they interact on a day to day basis. It can also be acquired through social media, movies, and tv shows which can influence people of all ages. A potential solution to this would be to implement a new teaching style in the education system, that promotes and supports the ambitions of female children and teenagers both academic and otherwise, while their male male peers are encouraged to follow through with their ambitions and work along side female classmates with the same interests, while maintaining equal respect among each other. In other words, encouraging interactions with the opposite sex. This will ultimately engrain the idea within each child, that both males and females are viewed as equals. To stop the spread of the predator/prey mindset through various media outlets, networks should implement restrictions on content. What can be viewed as distinguishing men and women by portraying inappropriate stereotypes, and exploiting the predator/prey mindset should be banned. Any trace of this mindset can heavily impact those who observe it, especially those of a developing mind, therefore a restriction on such content will prevent it’s expansion. From the combined efforts of media and social networks, an emergence in mutual respect will soon follow. Once this
The journey for equal opportunity and respect for both women and men has raised consciousness that "liberation from stereotypic and destructive roles" in children's literature is vital (Rudman, 179). Although factors such as television, radio, movies and comics have an impact on a child's eye view of the world, Researcher and educator, Masha Rudman agrees that "children's books continue to produce traditionally stereotyped programs, situations and characters (Rudman, 177)." But she continues to assess the fact that it also "reflects the growing awareness of the change in gender role definitions and behaviors (Rudman, 177)." While earlier studies (1930-1950) on gender stereotypes concentrated on battling personal characteristics of men and women such as nurturance (wom...
Westland, Ella. "Cinderella In The Classroom. Children's Responses To Gender.." Gender & Education 5.3 (1993): 237. Academic Search Premier. Web. 11 Nov. 2013.
Gender equity issues are virtually ignored in most university level education classes and any strategies created to decrease gender-biased classroom behavior are basically non-existent. Most efforts to remove this problem are geared toward working teachers when the focus needs to be on the upcoming generation of teachers presently in school (Miller, 2001).
By the time children enter kindergarten, they have assimilated the transmitted sex stereotypes and accept gender discrimination as the norm. The school often encourages this accommodation by exposing the child for thirteen years to a “hidden curriculum” of gender inequality, imparted by instructors who do little to alleviate its effects. The result is that generation after generation of women are prohibited from reaching their full potential as individuals and as members of society. In this nation, education was once regarded as the great equalizer that made the circumstances of one’s birth irrelevant to one’s ability to prosper. Beginning in the primary school, we must teach and practice sexual equality.
Sex and relationship education (SRE) is supporting children through their moral, physical and psychological aspects of growing up to be an adult, and making sure they have knowledge on relationships, sex, human sexuality and sexual health (Sex Education Forum, 2010). There are three main elements in SRE, the first element is attitudes and values, which is about developing positive values and be able to consider moral issues before they make their decisions on having intercourse (Kirby, 2007). The second element is personal and social skills, which is about teaching children to have the confidence to value themselves and others to become respectful for individual conscience and the skills to judge the kind of relationship they want; the third element is about accessing the knowledge and understanding of human sexuality, reproduction, sexual health, emotions and relationships (Kirby, 2007). The potential effect of SRE should be seen in these three areas, which includes reduction in teenager pregnancy, and the chances of getting sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) and being sexually assault, etc. As SRE can either be given at home to the child by parents, in school by teachers, or in youth organizations, alternative educational institutions, or youth offending organizations by Shine staffs or trained peer educators and volunteers (Levy 1992). This essay is mainly going to focus on the teacher-led SRE given in school and discuss whether it is beneficial or not, with the support of the positive outcome of children having SRE in relation of STDs, pregnancy and peer violence, and also the actual fact of SRE being not useful, supported with the data of teenagers not receiving the knowledge they should have been taught in SRE, and high te...
Gender stereotypes are common in the United States today, even though many men and women have been working hard to defeat it. The task is made difficult however, when society in general implants the idea of gender roles into the mind of a child. Two authors, Judy Mann of The Difference and Bernard Lefkowitz of Our Guys face the issue of gender roles and stereotypes, and how they affect our lives today.
"Learning to Be Gendered" is an article written by authors Penelope Eckert and Sally McConnell-Ginet, where they examine the reasons behind why children are assigned gender roles in society. In the text, they explore how behavior and language are used to identify a child's gender and the unnecessary stereotypes and sexism perpetuated by this. The authors also address the pressures and expectations that are placed on children to fulfill various gender roles. They attack the theory that children fall into their gender roles due to behaviors and biological reasons. Their article outlines the difficulty to escape the gender stereotypes that have overtaken society and also demonstrate a clear presentation of problems and solutions to this issue. I also think that the article bases its arguments on
“Did you know America ranks the lowest in education but the highest in drug use? It's nice to be number one, but we can fix that. All we need to do is start the war on education. If it's anywhere near as successful as our war on drugs, in no time we'll all be hooked on phonics” -Leighann (Lord) Leighamm Lord is a comedian, but when it comes to the education of children, she takes it very seriously and it is not so much a joke to her. Children are the future, and giving them the best education available is crucial to the future. Making decisions in the educational system would not only better the future, but the children’s future. These changes of segregating classrooms, will give the children a better working environment, to improve test scores, and academic advancements. Research shows that segregating classrooms would be a great step to a successful future; however, conflicting arguments to the negative and positive impacts of segregating classrooms to consider.
One of the main issues today 's students face is the act of being given gender roles and experiencing gender bias. To further explain, "Society treats boys and girls differently and expects them to develop different gender-role identities" (87). Throughout the gender section of the book, there are several examples given on how boys and girls are divided and given gender specific roles. For instance, girls are told that “Women aren’t good at math” and boys are told “Men don’t make good nurses” (87). These stereotypes affect the thinking of the students and later become obstacles when deciding careers. One way I would promote gender equality as a teacher is by completely eliminating the use of stereotypes in my classroom. This change will be accomplished by doing group activities and assignments in the classroom which avoid gender bias. It is important for students to have an equal opportunity to achieve their goals and follow their dreams. Sadly, when we expose our students to specific tasks and activities with respect to their gender, we limit their chances of having an optimistic approach towards their higher education and
Sex among teenagers is one of the most controversial topics of our time. The teen pregnancy and STD rates in the United States alone have become a major problem over the years. Despite these skyrocketing sex cases, sexual education is not being taught in some schools, and the ones that do are extremely limited. Parents, the government, organizations, and school boards do not teach the proper curriculum necessary for students to thoroughly understand sexual behavior. This essay will explain the need for proper sexual education in our schools.
Humans make judgements and assumptions almost constantly. This is an extremely difficult habit to break in the classroom. With my students, I feel that I can see their strengths and weaknesses rather quickly. It is easy to get caught up in my own perception of each student and not give them the credit and opportunities they deserve. Recently, I have started to evaluate my thoughts and actions, I have discovered some of the gender biases I tend to operate under. I believe that little girls can sit and do academic work easier because they do not have as much energy as little boys. This bias has been proven completely true and completely false at times. I have one
Girls are seen as caring, nurturing, quiet, and helpful. They place other’s needs above their own. Girls get ahead by hard work, not by being naturally gifted. Boys are seen as lazy, but girls are seen as not capable. In class, teacher will call on boys more than they call on girls. Boys are seen as better at math and science; while girls are better at reading and art. This bias is still at work even out of the classroom. There are more males employed at computer firms than women. The ratio of male to female workers in STEM fields is 3-1. In college, more women major in the humanities than in the sciences. In education, women are often seen as lesser than; even though 65% of all college degrees are earned by women. Women are still often seen as needing to be more decorative than intellectual, as represented by the Barbie who included the phrase, “Math is hard!” and the shirt that JC Penneys sold that said, “I’m too pretty to do homework, so my brother has to do it for me.” While there was a backlash on both items, it points out that there is a great deal of work to do on the educational gender bias to be
Gender stereotypes are very prevalent in today’s early childhood classrooms with societal expectations playing a significant role in generating the negative outcomes of both sexes (National Union of Teachers, 2013, p. 4). These societal expectations perpetuate inequality and become apparent through various interactions, messages and materials as well as through professional documentation such as the Australian Curriculum or the Early Years Learning Framework (EYLF) (Siraj-Blatchford, 2004, p, 22). This type of inequality disadvantages students creating restrictions on the possible opportunities they can encounter throughout life as well as impacting on their self-esteem and relationships (Siraj-Blatchford, 2004, p, 22) (National Union of Teachers, 2014, p, 3).