Awareness Of Gender Issues Research Articles

Gender awareness among physicians--the effect of specialty and gender. A study of teachers at a Swedish medical school.

BackgroundAn important goal for medical education today is professional development including gender equality and awareness of gender issues. Are medical teachers prepared for this task? We investigated gender awareness among physician teachers, expressed as their attitudes towards the role of gender in professional relationships, and how it varied with physician gender and specialty. We discuss how this might be related to the gender climate and sex segregation in different specialties.MethodQuestionnaires were sent to all 468 specialists in the clinical departments and in family medicine, who were engaged in educating medical students at a Swedish university. They were asked to rate, on visual analogue scales, the importance of physician and patient gender in consultation, of preceptor and student gender in clinical tutoring and of physician gender in other professional encounters. Differences between family physicians, surgical, and non-surgical hospital doctors, and between women and men were estimated by chi-2 tests and multivariate logistic regression analyses.ResultsThe response rate was 65 %. There were differences between specialty groups in all investigated areas mainly due to disparities among men. The odds for a male family physician to assess gender important were three times higher, and for a male non-surgical doctor two times higher when compared to a male surgical doctor. Female teachers assessed gender important to a higher degree than men. Among women there were no significant differences between specialty groups.ConclusionsThere was an interaction between physician teachers' gender and specialty as to whether they identified gender as important in professional relationships. Male physicians, especially from the surgical group, assessed gender important to a significantly lower degree than female physicians. Physicians' degree of gender awareness may, as one of many factors, affect working climate and the distribution of women and men in different specialties. Therefore, to improve working climate and reduce segregation we suggest efforts to increase gender awareness among physicians, for example educational programs where continuous reflections about gender attitudes are encouraged.

Teaching Critical Thinking: Using experience to promote learning in middle school and college students

This article shows that an awareness of students' use of their own experiences and a consistent promotion of critical literacy skills throughout a child's, adolescent's, and adult's life strengthens awareness of the social, political, economic, and cultural implications of education. The article expands on John Dewey's (1938) theory of experience as the means and goal of education to show that middle school and college graduate students use their different levels of both personal and academic experience to respond to and interpret similar issues in the same text. Specifically, the authors discuss their use of Roald Dahl's (1983) The Witches to show how teachers might approach a children's book as the backdrop for teaching different age groups an increased awareness of gender issues, the effects of stereotyping, and the influence of popular culture on students' lives. They argue that educators need to use creative teaching strategies to provide opportunities for students at all educational levels to expand their literacy skills. The final section of the paper provides possible ways in which teachers can use literary texts at various levels to engage students not only with the material itself but also connect the text with their personal/ professional experiences and their own literacies.

Something is Missing from Teacher Education: Attention to Two Genders

Assumptions about gender roles continue to limit children's aspirations and achievements. If we are to overcome those limitations, Ms. Sanders argues, gender equity must become a standard part of the curriculum of preservice teacher education. EDUCATORS may have noticed the recent disputes between Christina Hoff Sommers, author of The War Against Boys, and such advocates of gender equity as David Sadker and Carol Gilligan about whether boys or girls are being more shortchanged in the classroom. If it achieves nothing else, the debate should remind us that we need to talk about the educational well-being of both sexes, not either one separately. For example, here is a sampling of what's going on in our schools today that affects both girls and boys: * There were more than nine boys for every girl who took the highest- level Advanced Placement test in computer science last year.1 * Eighty-five percent of eighth- through 11th-grade girls report having been sexually harassed at school; for boys, the figure was 76%.2 * All but one of the fatal school shootings reported in recent years were committed by boys -- in fact, by white boys.3 * The average 11th-grade boy writes at the same level as the average eighth-grade girl, and boys read worse than girls at all grade levels. Moreover, these data have been unchanged for the past 30 years.4 In addition, there are still plenty of gross imbalances among adult men and women: * Women make up 18% of the U.S. Senate and 13% of the U.S. House of Representatives. * According to a recent study by Catalyst, women fill just 11% of the seats on the boards of Fortune 500 companies. Fourteen percent of the companies have no female board members at all.5 * More than 93% of inmates in our prisons and jails are men.6 * The life expectancy of men is 73 years, as opposed to 79 years for women.7 Where do these peculiar imbalances come from? Let me answer with a few more questions. Why is it considered masculine to be violent and aggressive? Why is it considered feminine to be nurturant and intuitive? Why are art, languages, and music considered feminine subjects in school, while math, science, and technology are considered masculine subjects? How many of our assumptions about gender are truly essential? All these imbalances -- dilemmas, problems, tragedies, limitations, injustices -- have a developmental history that starts with notions of femininity and masculinity learned by everyone, beginning with the pink and blue receiving blankets still used in hospitals today. In other words, these assumptions concern gender (what we learn about the proper ways for the sexes to behave) not sex (what we're born with). So, for example, it is correct to speak of gender roles and of single-sex education. Moreover, it is increasingly apparent that our traditional gender roles have not served us all that well. While it is obvious that men and women and boys and girls have gender roles, properly understood, gender equity is a human issue, not a women's issue. Given the reality evident in the facts I've cited above, we might assume that teacher educators would be preparing their preservice education students to teach equitably in their classrooms. Certainly, we would reason, because awareness of gender issues has been on a front burner in society for three decades, gender equity must be a hot topic in the preparation of teachers. But if we made these assumptions, we would be wrong. In response to several decades of societal concern about inequities facing racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic groups, multicultural education has become a thriving component of teacher education nationwide. Gender equity, however, is in the earliest stages of consideration. Several studies carried out in the 1990s confirm that gender equity is in its infancy in teacher education. …

Promoting Civil Society?: Democracy Assistance and Russian Women’s Organizations

Foreign assistance has both helped and hurt the feminist movement in Russia. Women’s groups have raised awareness of gender issues and domestic violence, but some Russians dismiss feminism as an alien philosophy imported from the West.

Notes from the Field: Gender Issues in the Management Curriculum: A Survey of Student Experiences

A major Australian report recently criticized the relationship between the gendered culture of management education and business management practices, in an effort to reduce impediments to equal representation of women in management. It recommended a major overhaul of university management education, whereby institutions would review their own role in shaping corporate management cultures and practices, and raise awareness of gender issues in the classroom. This article reports on a subsequent survey that explored postgraduate business students' perceptions of gender issues in the management curriculum, and their effects on learning experiences. It suggests that a masculine ethos is perceptible in management education, which can disadvantage female and male students in different ways. The study suggests that greater awareness of gender issues should be a major consideration for management educators, to enable future managers to recognize and harness gender diversity in the workplace.

New initiatives to place gender on the agenda in business schools

Discusses universities role in resolving gender problems and of combating “impoverished” learning. Argues that gender should be central to management development and education and proposes that gender should be placed high on the agenda to challenge traditional sex role stereotypes in students’ organizations. Proposes that because of problematic areas in educational environment these may not be conducive to women’s development managerially. States that women academics have to get to these management positions to challenge the status quo, but that the movement up the ladder of management responsibility is very difficult. Goes on to highlight the various supporting arguments and discusses these at length. Gives an example in management educationof gender on the agenda and details out the occurrences and effects. Concludes that the initiatives discussed should be taken on board business/management schools should begin to place gender firmly on the agenda‐increasing awareness of gender issues through the process.

Our Gendered Past: Archaeological Studies of Gender in Southern Africa

Gender stereotyping is, it seems, as old as the study of and archaeologists are as guilty of it as any other section of the community. Labels such as man the hunter and woman the child nurturer had the effect of rendering women invisible in the archaeological record. Awareness of gender issues in southern African archaeology is relatively new and few publications have attempted to engender the past. The research documented here reveals that changes in gender roles and ideologies have been a natural part of southern African history for thousands of years and will continue to be a natural part of the historical process. The book focuses on the variability of gender roles through time, and on how these roles have played their part in shaping or maintaining social mores. It is a study which is of direct relevance to contemporary southern Africa where, through timidity, scepticism or ignorance, some still argue that traditional gender roles are proper and therefore immutable.

Does alternating between masculine and feminine pronouns eliminate perceived gender bias in text

This study explores whether alternating betweenthe pronouns “he” and “she” ina text is an effective way to avoid sexist language.Participants were psychology students at a largemidwestern university and were predominately White and frommiddle-class backgrounds. Students read two versions ofan essay, one that alternated between masculine andfeminine pronouns and one that exclusively used paired, “he or she”-type pronouns. Readersperceived the alternating version to be biased in favorof females and lower in overall quality than the pairedversion. However, the alternating version appeared to be more effective at combating sexism,suggesting an alternating strategy may be desirable forauthors with this goal. If the author is not primarilyconcerned with increasing readers' awareness of gender issues, techniques such as pluralization or thesingular “they” may be moreappropriate.

Approaches to gender- awareness raising: Experiences in a government education project in Nepal

This article describes two approaches to training which have contributed significantly to raising awareness of gender issues among organisations and individuals having an interest in the development of the Nepalese education system.

Feminist teaching in the mixed classroom

All instructors who attempt to be sensitive to gender issues, and who bring gender issues, readings, discussions, and writing assignments into university classes—no matter the titles of the courses—face wide‐ranging reactions. Much has been written about pedagogies for introducing such issues, and for creating a nonsexist environment in the classroom. Less attention has been paid to the varying reactions of students in different countries, with different national and ethnic backgrounds, to such issues. What cultural factors should instructors understand, and how can they be more sensitive to them, especially in courses containing students from various national backgrounds? To answer this, I'll borrow from my own experience and dwell on international students who come to the U.S. for university study and who often return home, as well as on students who are very recent U.S. immigrants. My observations, however, may have even wider applications. There's no question that an awareness of gender issues should be promoted in the classroom. But such issues should not be taught the same in every class; much depends on the particular group of students, their cultural backgrounds, and of course, the course subject (whether it be language, politics, literature or something else). How, then, should “feminist teaching” or “feminist pedagogy” be accomplished in such circumstances?

Collaborative alliances: the environment, women and the Africa 2000 Network

This paper reviews the work of an international environmental management project known as the Africa 2000 Network that emerged from the need to address the growing awareness of gender issues in environmentally sustainabledevelopment activities worldwide. The intention of this study was first to establish the degree of linkage between women’s needs and interests and the work of Africa 2000 Network’s national coordinators in Cameroon, Ghana, and Kenya. The second was to relate the findings of Africa 2000 Network’s (hereafter called the Network) responses to women to the current research on gender, environment and development. The third was to clarify more specifically and substantively the types of actions that have empowered the resource management roles of African women while at the same time alleviating the effects of environmental degradation. It is hoped that this investigation will begin to contribute to the formulation of strategies and structures that go beyond the mere cooptation of African women’s labour into mainstream development activities. The aim is to work towards the transformation of current configurations of power relations within the ownership and control of resources; not only between men and women but also, ultimately, between nations.

A personal experience of supervision

Abstract TTte author's personal experience and perspective as a feminist counsellor and supervisee is explored. Some key boundary issues are identified which have brought about some important learning for her. These examples illustrate the crucial importance of an awareness of gender issues within both the counselling and the supervisory relationship.

The sexist social worker? some gender issues in social work practice with adolescent girls

Abstract Social workers' lack of awareness of gender issues is damaging to clients and workers. In the example of services for adolescent girls, it can be shown that girls and boys reach care or supervision by different routes and once there are subject to different placement practices and resources. Social work practice does not accurately reflect known behaviour or needs either before or after entry to services. In general, services try to be more protective to girls, but, should girls be unresponsive, they are treated more harshly than boys. Behaviour which is ignored or accepted in boys is condemned and restricted in girls, a reflection of sexism in our society. While services focussed on girls may be the answer to some problems, they may also perpetuate stereotypes unless planned to counteract them. Services for adolescents should incorporate choice of mixed and single sex activities, and it is essential to have women in senior positions as effective role models for adolescent girls.