Group items tagged

"Gender equity does not exist in business, in academics, or athletics. One other place it does not exist is in children's literature. In part, the inequity in the literature is one of invisibility-fewer female than male protagonists are represented in books written for children. Additionally, few of those young female protagonists are strong enough of mind, body, or will to serve as positive role models for girls both in and out of our classrooms. Another facet of the inequity in literature is that many characters are not shown as multi-dimensional human beings with strengths as well as weaknesses. Instead, both males and females display behavior and traits which reflect stereotypical roles, responsibilities, and expectations. Although there may be segments of our society which are redefining gender roles, the female and male characters children read about are often locked into traditional jobs and behaviors. As teachers and adults who work with children, we advocate wide reading of good literature as one way for children to have vicarious experiences in which they can identify with strong characters across a wide range of human experiences which cross traditional gender boundaries. But . . . if children's books and the characters in them remain gender-bound, the ideas which might cause children to develop expectations for the future, responses to life's events, and stances on issues may also remain stereotypically gender-bound. We must all search for books which will initiate conversations and questions about gender roles and the perceptions of appropriate behavior and activities. Through these conversations and questions, teachers and other caring adults can be instrumental in helping the students reflect on gender expectations, reflection that can lead to appreciation and implementation of gender fairness and equity. Although we need to share books which validate the present experiences of the readers' lives, we also need to challenge those experiences by show

"Language plays a central role in the way human beings behave and think. The National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) is concerned about the critical role language plays in promoting fair treatment of women and girls, men and boys. Through careful selection of gender-fair language, NCTE members have the opportunity to influence thought and behavior both directly and indirectly. These guidelines offer suggestions for language use that will open rather than close possibilities and that speakers and writers should consider when engaged in communication activities that include: writing papers and publications preparing handouts and materials designing and delivering oral presentations speaking with students, parents, and community members working with students developing curriculum selecting texts and media exploring language use in classrooms serving on local, regional, and national committees "

"Multicultural education means different things to different people. However, the differences are not as great, confusing, or contradictory as some critics and analysts claim. Many of these differences are more semantic than substantive, a reflection of the developmental level in the field and the disciplinary orientation of advocates. One should expect people who have been involved in a discipline or educational movement for a long time to understand and talk about it differently from those who are new to it. Similarly, educators who look at schooling from the vantage point of sociology, psychology, or economics will have differing views of the key concerns of schooling. Yet, these disparate analysts may agree on which issues are the most critical ones. Such differences over means coupled with widespread agreement on substance are naturally found in discussions of multicultural education. But this diversity should not be a problem, especially when we consider that multicultural education is all about plurality. The field includes educational scholars, researchers, and practitioners from a wide variety of personal, professional, philosophical, political, and pedagogical backgrounds. Therefore, we should expect that they will use different points of reference in discussing ethnic diversity and cultural pluralism. Yet, when allowances are made for these differences, a consensus on the substantive components of multicultural education quickly emerges. Such agreement is evident in areas such as the key content dimensions, value priorities, the justification for multicultural education, and its expected outcomes. Only when these fundamentals are articulated do variations emerge. Some advocates talk about expected outcomes, while others consider the major determining factor to be the group being studied; the arena of school action is the primary focus for one set of advocates, and still others are most concerned with distinctions between theory and practice. Some people