J.H.
CERILLES STATE COLLEGE
Dumingag Campus
GEE 105
GENDER AND SOCIETY
M
O
D
GENDER, CULTURE AND
U INSTITUTION
L
E MYRNA P. PERIGO,
MAED
Asst. Prof. IV
4
For Instructional Purposes Only
Chapter
LESSON4
SEX ROLE AND GENDER ROLE
1
OVERVIEW
A gender role is a set of societal norms dictating what types of behaviors are generally considered
acceptable, appropriate, or desirable for a person based on their
This actual or perceived
chapter sex. These are
describes usually
about
centered around opposing conceptions of femininity and masculinity, although there are myriad exceptions
and variations.
how important is gender
role, what is sex and gender,
The term ‘gender role’ was first coined by John Money in 1955 duringdoes
how the course of his study
gender of
related
intersex individuals to describe the manners in which these individuals express their status as a male or female,
ulture and howROLE effective
OF WOMEN theINdifferent
SOCIETY institutions
in a situation where no clear biological assignment exists.
gents of socialization in shaping ones individual
[Link]
to achieve gender equality.
Sex roles refer CONTENTS
to socially coded behaviors and practices often related to a person's reproductive capacities,
such as women with the roles of motherhood and men with fatherhood. The term sex role is often used
interchangeablyLesson 1 gender role; however, the modifier gender implies roles may be socially or
with the term
Sex Role
culturally and
produced Gender
whereas Role roles may be naturally or biologically determined. Notions of sex roles
sex implies
Lesson
tend to privilege biological 2
factors such as internal or external sex organs, chromosomes and hormones as
Related Issues
determining a person's social placement as either male or female, man or woman.
Lesson 3
[Link]
Gender Equality
Gender theory is the study of what is understood as masculine and/or feminine and/or queer behavior in any
given context, community, society, or field of study (including, but not limited to, literature, history, sociology,
education, applied linguistics, religion, health sciences, philosophy, cultural studies).
Gender Schema Theory
Compare and contrast sex and gender
[Link] roles
Discuss gender and school and its related
Gender schema theory was formally introduced by Sandra Bem in 1981 as a cognitive theory to explain how
issues.
individuals become gendered in society, and how sex-linked characteristics are maintained and transmitted to
Share perceptions on gender equality.
Learning Outcomes:
other members of a culture. Gender-associated information is predominantly transmuted through society by
way of schemata, or networks of information that allow for some information to be more easily assimilated than
Make a Powerpoint presentation in
others. Bem argues that there are individual differences in the degree to which people hold these gender
every lesson.
schemata.
Make a compilation album for all
activities.
[Link]
For Instructional Purposes Only
4 Theoretical Perspectives on Gender
[Link] introtosociology/chapter/theories-of-gender-and-
sex/
1. Structural Functionalism
Structural functionalism has provided one of the most important perspectives of sociological research in the
twentieth century and has been a major influence on research in the social sciences, including gender studies.
Viewing the family as the most integral component of society, assumptions about gender roles within marriage
assume a prominent place in this perspective.
Functionalists argue that gender roles were established well before the pre-industrial era when men typically took
care of responsibilities outside of the home, such as hunting, and women typically took care of the domestic
responsibilities in or around the home. These roles were considered functional because women were often limited
by the physical restraints of pregnancy and nursing and unable to leave the home for long periods of time. Once
established, these roles were passed on to subsequent generations since they served as an effective means of
keeping the family system functioning properly.
When changes occurred in the social and economic climate of the United States during World War II, changes in
the family structure also occurred. Many women had to assume the role of breadwinner (or modern hunter-
gatherer) alongside their domestic role in order to stabilize a rapidly changing society. When the men returned
from war and wanted to reclaim their jobs, society fell back into a state of imbalance, as many women did not want
to forfeit their wage-earning positions (Hawke 2007).
2. Conflict Theory
According to conflict theory, society is a struggle for dominance among social groups (like women versus men) that
compete for scarce resources. When sociologists examine gender from this perspective, we can view men as the
dominant group and women as the subordinate group. According to conflict theory, social problems are created
when dominant groups exploit or oppress subordinate groups. Consider the Women’s Suffrage Movement or the
debate over women’s “right to choose” their reproductive futures. It is difficult for women to rise above men, as
dominant group members create the rules for success and opportunity in society (Farrington and Chertok 1993).
Friedrich Engels, a German sociologist, studied family structure and gender roles. Engels suggested that the same
owner-worker relationship seen in the labor force is also seen in the household, with women assuming the role of
the proletariat. This is due to women’s dependence on men for the attainment of wages, which is even worse for
women who are entirely dependent upon their spouses for economic support. Contemporary conflict theorists
suggest that when women become wage earners, they can gain power in the family structure and create more
democratic arrangements in the home, although they may still carry the majority of the domestic burden, as noted
earlier (Rismanand and Johnson-Sumerford 1998).
For Instructional Purposes Only
3. Symbolic Interactionism
Interactionists focus on the meanings associated with sexuality and with sexual orientation. Since femininity is
devalued in U.S. society, those who adopt such traits are subject to ridicule; this is especially true for boys or
men. Just as masculinity is the symbolic norm, so too has heterosexuality come to signify normalcy. Prior to
1973, the American Psychological Association (APA) defined homosexuality as an abnormal or deviant
disorder. Interactionist labeling theory recognizes the impact this has made. Before 1973, the APA was
powerful in shaping social attitudes toward homosexuality by defining it as pathological. Today, the APA cites
no association between sexual orientation and psychopathology and sees homosexuality as a normal aspect of
human sexuality (APA 2008).
Interactionists are also interested in how discussions of homosexuals often focus almost exclusively on the sex
lives of gays and lesbians; homosexuals, especially men, may be assumed to be hypersexual and, in some
cases, deviant. Interactionism might also focus on the slurs used to describe homosexuals. Labels such as
“queen” and “fag” are often used to demean homosexual men by feminizing them. This subsequently affects
how homosexuals perceive themselves. Recall Cooley’s “looking-glass self,” which suggests that self develops
as a result of our interpretation and evaluation of the responses of others (Cooley 1902). Constant exposure to
derogatory labels, jokes, and pervasive homophobia would lead to a negative self-image, or worse, self-hate.
4. Feminist Theory
Feminist theory is a type of conflict theory that examines inequalities in gender-related issues. It uses the
conflict approach to examine the maintenance of gender roles and inequalities. Radical feminism, in particular,
considers the role of the family in perpetuating male dominance. In patriarchal societies, men’s contributions
are seen as more valuable than those of women. Patriarchal perspectives and arrangements are widespread
and taken for granted. As a result, women’s viewpoints tend to be silenced or marginalized to the point of
being discredited or considered invalid. Sanday’s study of the Indonesian Minangkabau (2004) revealed that in
societies some consider to be matriarchies (where women comprise the dominant group), women and men
tend to work cooperatively rather than competitively regardless of whether a job is considered feminine by
U.S. standards. The men, however, do not experience the sense of bifurcated consciousness under this social
structure that modern U.S. females encounter (Sanday 2004).
For Instructional Purposes Only
There is no better way to start than to talk about the role of family in
our social development, as family is usually considered to be the most
important agent of socialization. As infants, we are completely dependent on
others to survive. Our parents, or those who play the parent role, are
responsible for teaching us to function and care for ourselves.
They, along with the rest of our family, also teach us about close relationships, group life, and how to share
resources. Additionally, they provide us with our first system of values, norms, and beliefs - a system that is
usually a reflection of their own social status, religion, ethnic group, and more.
[Link]
The next important agent of childhood socialization is the school.
Of course, the official purpose of school is to transfer subject
knowledge and teach life skills, such as following directions and
meeting deadlines. But, students don't just learn from the
academic curriculum prepared by teachers and school
administrators. In school, we also learn social skills through our
interactions with teachers, staff, and other students.
For example, we learn the importance of obeying authority and that to be successful, we must learn to be quiet,
to wait, and sometimes to act interested even when we're not. [Link]
[Link]
A peer group is made up of people who are similar in age and social status and who
share interests. Peer group socialization begins in the earliest years, such as when
kids on a playground teach younger children the norms about taking turns, the rules
of a game, or how to shoot a basket. As children grow into teenagers, this process
continues. Peer groups are important to adolescents in a new way, as they begin to
develop an identity separate from their parents and exert independence.
Additionally, peer groups provide their own opportunities for socialization since kids usually engage in different types
of activities with their peers than they do with their families. Peer groups provide adolescents’ first major socialization
experience outside the realm of their families. Interestingly, studies have shown that although friendships rank high in
adolescents’ priorities, this is balanced by parental influence. [Link]
socialization/
For Instructional Purposes Only
[Link]
Mass media distribute impersonal information to a wide audience, via television, newspapers, radio, and the
Internet. With the average person spending over four hours a day in front of the television (and children averaging
even more screen time), media greatly influences social norms (Roberts, Foehr, and Rideout 2005).
People learn about objects of material culture (like new technology and transportation options), as well as
nonmaterial culture—what is true (beliefs), what is important (values), and what is expected (norms).
[Link]
While some religions are informal institutions, here we focus on practices followed by formal institutions. Religion
is an important avenue of socialization for many people. The United States is full of synagogues, temples, churches,
mosques, and similar religious communities where people gather to worship and learn. Like other institutions,
these places teach participants how to interact with the religion’s material culture (like a mezuzah, a prayer rug, or
a communion wafer). For some people, important ceremonies related to family structure—like marriage and birth
—are connected to religious celebrations. Many religious institutions also uphold gender norms and contribute to
their enforcement through socialization. From ceremonial rites of passage that reinforce the family unit to power
dynamics that reinforce gender roles, organized religion fosters a shared set of socialized values that are passed on
through society.
For Instructional Purposes Only
For Instructional Purposes Only
LESSON
GENDER AND SCHOOL AND
2 RELATED ISSUES
How Gender Disparities Affect Classroom Learning
Kieran Chidi Nduagbo
Schools are influential agents of socialization. They play vital roles in how we make meaning of the world around us,
significantly affecting how we perceive ourselves and others, as well as differences across race, languages, disabilities,
and gender. Because of this, schools have the responsibility to model, teach, and create conditions in which each
child's gender diversity is accepted and nourished.
Gender and Development
Gender development is a natural process for all children. One of the vital ways educators can support and encourage
healthy gender development in young children is by understanding gender identity and how it forms. Gender identity
is an inherent sense that people have about who they are based on the interaction of their biological traits,
developmental effects, and environmental conditions. This might be masculine, feminine, a combination of the two, in
between, or neither (Rafferty, (2018). When children are born, they are assigned a biological sex (male or female)
based on their physical characteristics. For many children, their gender identity matches the gender-sex they were
assigned at birth.
But similar to the development of our physical bodies, cognizance of gender identity evolves with time, and some
children find it very difficult to reconcile their given gender and their gender identity (Rafferty, 2018). It's also
important for teachers to understand gender expression (how people externally communicate their gender identity
through physical expressions, such as clothing and hairstyle, and social expressions, like their names and pronoun
choice).
Students also navigate gender roles—the behaviors, attitudes, and expectations associated with being either male or
female. These differences have to do with physical behaviors, styles of social interaction, academic motivations,
behaviors, and choices. Teachers sometime unconsciously influence gender role differences through the responses
and choices they make for and on behalf of their students. For example, teachers might assign roles to students in role
plays based on their biological gender or influence student dress codes.
[Link]
For Instructional Purposes Only
Gender and Learning
Thinking back to your own school days, you might remember specific differences in the way teachers treated boys and
girls, such as being reprimanded more severely or being required to perform more. Though many teachers do not
deliberately decide to treat boys and girls differently, these actions affect learning (Erden & Wolfgang, 2004). In the
early elementary grades, this might look like gender splitting by addressing students as girls and boys or asking them
to line up or put jackets on in gendered groups. This behavior supports the notion that there are only two discrete
types of people and that they should behave and be treated differently.
This pattern of differential treatments based on gender begins in the early elementary grades and continues into
college (Goldberg, 2016). Teachers tend to discipline boys more severely and provide them with more praise and
feedback than girls. They praise girls' works mostly for physical appearance, such as neatness, cleanliness, or artistic
quality, instead of content. In subjects like language arts and art, girls receive more teacher interaction than boys
because these subjects are considered "feminine." In high schools and colleges, male students are still more likely to
enroll in courses like advanced mathematics, science, and engineering than female students, which affects the
percentage of women entering these professions (Lynch, 2016).
Textbooks and educational materials also contribute significantly to the differences in treatment. Although there has
been some significant improvement in this area over the past 30 years, many educational materials still characterize
girls as being more helpless and dependent than boys, or perpetuate gender stereotypes, tokenism, and omission of
people outside the gender binary (Lynch, 2016; Goldberg, 2016).
How Can Schools Respond to Gender Differences and Expressions?
Schools should be a welcoming place for students of all genders, including students who identify as nonbinary or
transgender. So, what can we do to alleviate these issues related to gender in schools?
1. Learn about gender biases: Administrators can begin by encouraging teachers to take on reflective practices
through professional development and trainings to become conscious of their own gender biases and learn to treat
students in ways that are consistent with students' identities. The Sum's Online Equity Institute is one organization for
educators that deals with different issues about gender, race, sexual orientation, religion, culture, disabilities, and
culture.
2. Put support in writing: Ensure that gender acceptance is present in written and visual signs and other symbols, such
as registration forms, student information systems, and administrative regulations. Educators and school principals
should write supportive gender policies that address privacy and disclosure, student records and information systems,
use of names and pronouns, dress codes, sex-separated facilities and activities, and harassment and bullying (Orr and
Baum, 2015).
3. Change classroom culture: Teachers can create gender-inclusive classroom cultures by using gendered language
such as friends, scholars, or students, and using literature to introduce and discuss gender. One resource I like is No
Difference Between Us: Teaching children gender equality, respect, choice, self-esteem, empathy, tolerance, and
acceptance by Jayneen Sanders. Engage in conversation about biases, discriminations, and prejudices and encourage
students to discover who they are. For example, teachers can support boys playing characters from the
movie Frozen if that's what they like and girls playing cowboys if that's what they like.
For Instructional Purposes Only
4. Fight gender stereotypes: The UN Human Rights Office defines a gender stereotype as a generalization about
characteristics and roles men or women "should" have or perform (UN Human Rights Office of the High Commissioner,
2020). These can limit children's opportunities to learn and develop. Fight gender stereotypes with the following
actions:
Raise awareness of the tendency to rate boys higher than girls in subjects such as mathematics, science,
engineering, and technology. This helps close the gender achievement gaps in these subject areas and promote
gender equity among young mathematicians, scientists, engineers, and technologists (Robinson-Cimpain,
Lubienski, Ganley, and Copur-Gencturk, 2014).
When teaching a text or film, require students to identify and analyze gender stereotypes and expectations
within the context of the story and use texts or stories that demonstrate that worth and happiness do not stem
from physical appearances.
Require students to critically think about how power structures benefit from gender stereotypes and what
people can do to resist them. Familiarize students with real individuals or characters who have non-gender-
stereotypical professions or positively challenge gender stereotypes, such as male nurses and female scientists
or men as caretakers. Use books and content that include LGBTQ characters or those who do not fit typical
gender stereotypes, such as 10,000 Dresses by Marcus Ewert and Honestly Ben by Bill Konigsberg.
For Instructional Purposes Only
LESSON GENDER EQUALITY
Gender equality, also known as sex equality, gender egalitarianism, sexual equality, or equality of the
genders, is the view that everyone should receive equal treatment and not be discriminated against based
on their gender. Gender equality is achieved when women and men enjoy the same rights and
opportunities across all sectors of society, including economic participation and decision making, and
when the different behaviors, aspirations and needs of women and men are equally valued and favored.
What is the difference between Gender Equity
and Gender Equality
Gender equity is the process of being fair to women and men.
To ensure fairness, strategies and measures must often be
available to compensate for women’s historical and social
disadvantages that prevent women and men from otherwise operating
on a level playing field. Equity leads to equality.
Gender equality requires equal enjoyment by women and men of
socially-valued goods, opportunities, resources and rewards.
Where gender inequality exists, it is generally women who are
excluded or disadvantaged in relation to decision-making and access
to economic and social resources.
[Link]
Role of Schools in Reinforcing Gender Equality
The gender inequities pervading society are carried into the school environment. This is evidenced in school
processes such as teaching, teacher-student interaction, school management, and the plan and design of the
physical infrastructure. Teaching and learning materials, for example, may contain gender stereotypes. Teachers are
not always aware of the gender specific needs of both girls and boys. School management systems may not
sufficiently address gender constraints such as sexual harassment, and many schools do not have adequate or
separate toilets for girls and boys. As a result, the schools do not provide a gender responsive environment for
effective teaching and learning to take place.
For Instructional Purposes Only
The Holistic Intervention Package can include the following Elements
Undertaking gender sensitization of parents, community leaders and members, teachers, girls and boys in
order to raise their awareness and understanding of the need to support girls’ education.
Training teachers in the skills for making teaching and learning processes responsive to the specific needs
of girls and boys.
Empowering girls with skills for self-confidence, assertiveness, speaking out, decision making and
negotiation in order for them to overcome gender based constraints to their education.
Empowering boys with skills to de-link from gender oppressive attitudes and practices such as macho-ism,
bullying and sexual affronts and to develop the self-confidence needed to accept gender equality
positively.
Training the school community to manage sexual maturation issues of both girls and boys with particular
emphasis on menstruation management.
Training teachers and students in guidance and counselling skills.
Establishing guidance and counselling desks in order to provide services for the social and psychological
development of girls and boys.
The following are some of Ideas to promoting Gender Equity in Schools
Establish an award to recognize children who promote equity.
Do a play about gender equity in school.
Write an equity column or article in the paper.
Organize a walk, race or athletic event for equity.
Honor people who poster gender equity in their work and life spirit.
Develop posters that promote equity.
Create a videotape on gender equity.
Reformulate or construct an equitable workplace.
Monitor a school or district for equity.
Award a gender equity scholarship
Present an equity workshop at a conference
Observe classrooms to detect bias in interactions.
Manage an equity booth at a toy, computer, or grocery store.
For Instructional Purposes Only
Role of Teachers in Reinforcing Gender Equality
Teachers play a crucial role in every classroom. They are the actors who shape the success or failure of their
students. Their interpretation of the curriculum, interaction with learners, and way they assign duties and
homework, are important factors in a child’s schooling.
The following are some of the Role of teachers to reinforcing Gender Equality
Teachers and teacher educators should examine their syllabuses with the view of incorporating a gender
dimension by: including the introductory themes on gender; and by exploring gender issues within some of
the topics of existing syllabus.
Teacher educators themselves be gender sensitive through gender awareness and sensitization programs.
Teacher educators and teachers should employ engendered patterns of classroom organization and
interaction
Teacher educators and teachers should engendered teaching approaches be employed.
Capacity building centers should be established in all educational regions intended to train teachers and
teacher educators in gender –laden education.
Teacher and teacher educators should :
a. conducting workshops
b. introducing engendered classroom organization and interaction
c. introductory lessons on gender.
d. focus on gender issues within the existing syllabus topics.
e. introducing gender issues career guidance
f. analyzed gender issues in instructional materials
g. conducting research projects on gender issues.
For Instructional Purposes Only
