This is a great resource from Psychology Today that contains links to numerous articles about how student’s experiences in school are influenced by gendered norms and sexuality.
School & Gender
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Tag Archives: chapter 1
For strong daughters, stop with the sex stereotypes
Interesting editorial from CNN written by his father noting the way his daughter is rewarded for accomplishments at school (“best dressed”) and influence of popular culture (Justin Bieber nightgowns) on ideas of femininity.
‘Attractive & Fat’ ad spoofs Abercrombie
In this interview with activist and artist Jes Baker, she explains what motivated her to write a public letter to the CEO of Abercrombie and Fitch after he had been quoted saying that they did not offer women’s sizes over a size 10 because “We go after the attractive all-American kid with a great attitude and a lot of friends. A lot of people don’t belong [in our clothes], and they can’t belong. Are we exclusionary? Absolutely.” This is an example of how institutions (in this case business) influences gendered norms because while there are XL and XXL men’s sizes at Abercrombie, you won’t find larger women’s sizes.
Baker has prompted a change.org petition and created a Abercrombie ad parody to “challenge the separation of attractive and fat.” Check it out!
Transgendered Students – Names/Pronouns
Click here to read the story of a student named Logan Brouelette and how the use of his preferred name and pronouns affected his health and experiences at Western University. This is a great example of why language matters in the creation of gendered identities.
Transgendered First Grader
Here is a news story about a transgendered first-grader and how her parents are suing her school to ensure she is treated fairly.
Gendered Identities in South Asia
There are many countries that identify more than two sexes and the gendered identities that go with these. Click here for an article about how Pakistan has had its first “shemale” candidates for political office and here for an article on how Nepal has created a new designation for sex on citizenship documents and in the national census.
Both of these stories demonstrate how institutions (in his case government/law) influence perceptions of gender in important ways. By changing laws, these governments have changed understandings of what is possible and acceptable.
Gendered Norms in Nepal
In chapter 1, we talked about how everyday practices influence how we perceive gender. Here is an example from Nepal that demonstrates health consequences too. In Nepal, gendered norms call for men to have the first pick of and more of the family’s food, if they wish to do so. Children typically eat from their mother’s plates. So, both children and women are often chronically malnourished. Read more about it here.
Women’s athletics a battle for respect
Here’s a great example of how girls can see a variety of role models (cognitive development) through greater exposure to female athletes. This also demonstrates how institutions (US government/laws) influence gendered norms. With the introduction of Title IX, gendered norms of femininity started to change as more and more girls became athletes.
Ground-breaking cover ‘girl’: Male model Andrej Pejic lands his first cover of Elle magazine
Here’s the latest on Andre Pejic’s modeling!