Where the confusion begins...
As I was going through week seven's reading I thought about the book and the movie He's Just Not That Into You, especially this scene which is the introduction to the story line.
I find myself questioning the role of gender identity in the classroom. While as educators we pat ourselves on the back for girls doing so well in both literacy testing, are we neglecting them because of gender stereotyping. Bronwyn T. Williams quotes Sanford's work "By quietly doing their work well, girls also may find that they do not receive as much of the teacher's time and consideration"(Sanford, 2005). All too often we focus on boys because as the saying goes, "The squeaky wheel gets the grease." Boys act up and the teacher focuses on them, they behave and we praise them for it. Girls do as accepted seeking approval and maybe get a pat on the head.
I thought about my own literature choices and found that even as a young reader I was more interested in books similar to what the researchers have found. Even in my own writing, when I have created short stories. I always thought it was so that I could work out on paper the issues I was having. But I question now if it was really just my following a stereotyped role I didn't realize I had been taught.
As I have matured I have found more interest in books that take a new twist on the female and male protagonist. Recently the 9th grade class I worked with used Ellen Hopkins novels as both independent reading books and a class read-aloud book . Both the five boys in the class and the lone female were taken by the stories and the characters. The books lead to some interesting and at times uncomfortable discussions about the life of adolescents and what the class could relate to.
I want to question the concern for not wanting books that bring sexuality, and violence to the fore front of classroom discussions. For years, even when I was in school myself one of the concerns was that if parents or teachers didn't talk about such things with students, they would talk about them with their friends. That will lead to misguided ideas, which will then only lead to greater issues for those adolescents.
I was among the thousands who were jumping up and down rejoicing Abby Wambach's goal for a number of reasons, first my own daughter plays soccer and I think it is great to be able to show her that females can achieve such heights in sports. Secondly, I am from Rochester and so is Abby. The comparison of Abby to Landon Donovan is both great and forehead slapping. Great because it shows that women are just as amazing as male athletes. And the forehead slap because even with amazing women like Abby and her team mates, the gender stereo typing with only be more intense. If the US team doesn't continue on, or even possibly win the World Cup will it be because they aren't as good as male athletes? If they do win will it be more of a pat on the head and a "Oh good job girls."
When I was working on my graduate program I had to do a presentation on gender stereo typing in the classroom. I put together a class activity for my professor and classmates to do illustrating the fact that we are more aware and educated about male figures in history, science and math. Also those males, are all white, with a handful of African American exceptions. All in all of the faces that I presented, the class knew about 5% of them. This activity made me more aware of the gap and that girls need to have more positive role models presented to them as well role models of minority groups.
I know that saying let boys and girls read whatever is going to get a book in their hands so that they are reading, I worry about continuing the stereotypes. I think about my daughter and son, do I want them feeling they have to fall in line with these standards? Will my trying to encourage them at home to be themselves be enough to counter the gender identification issues adolescents face?
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