This is taken from Channel 4's 2017 "The Secret Lives of 5 Year Olds". The series took a long, hard look at gender stereotypes. The conclusion I took away from the show: children have very clear ideas about the 'innate' characteristics and roles of men and women.
Gender stereotyping does feel like a secret. It's something that happens passively. Teachers assume that boys will want the blue stickers and are surprised when the children in their class aren't bothered by the colour of sticker distributed to them (see the NUT's brilliant "Stereotypes stop you doing stuff"). When gender stereotypes are considered in the Primary School, it's usually a cursory nod to including some strong women role models in the lessons or book corner.
The big, horrible, incriminating secret is that teachers pass on harmful gender stereotypes everyday. I do not believe that the responsibility for dismantling the patriarchy lies solely with teachers; teacher's already have more than enough on their plate and nowhere near enough time. Yet by not taking the time to critically analyse the language we use around gender we are limiting girls' aspirations, forcing boys to hide their emotions and making anyone that feels like they don't fit in a gender-binary society believe they are inadequate.
Why are gender-binary stereotypes harmful?
Girlguiding UK survey over 1,600 girls aged 7-21 annually. Last year's results show the results of gender stereotypes on our young women:
Boys are equally harmed by gender stereotypes. It is known among Primary teachers that boys simply do not read as much as girls, quite possibly because the stereotypes dictate that they should be building dens instead. It's not surprising then that when is comes to GCSEs, boys do 8.9% worse (TES 2016). Anecdotal evidence tells us that gender stereotypes harm boys mental health; Jayson Flores wrote on Everyday Feminism that he believes being raised a boy stopped him from getting the mental health support he needed. Hearing common utterances like "boys don't cry" and "be a strong boy" could be harmful to boys who don't identify with the stereotypical idea of a strong boy. Gender equality is for all genders.
The good news is that we're not on our own. In a 2015 survey, Scottish parents of young children overwhelmingly supported the notion of treating children equally in early childhood and 80% said they would like help in challenging gender stereotypes, we've got allies! Parents recognised that gender stereotypes prevail in advertisements, clothes and toy shops and the media. However, they stated the most influence on their child comes from the views of their peers. If children are learning from their peers, the classroom provides the perfect place for stereotypes to be explored and challenged, liberating children from the restrictions placed upon them by our patriarchal society.
We need to talk about feminism in the UK to ensure a brighter future for ALL our children.
Comments
Post a Comment