Gender and Sex

The terms 'sex' and 'gender' are often confused with each other, but they have two different meanings. The sex is about the physical differences between boys and girls (e.g. genitals). Gender, on the contrary, describes the way you feel about your sex and the expectations the society has towards the sex (for example girls are sweet, boys are tough). 

Gender stereotypes 

Riddle 1: 

A father and his son are involved in a major car accident. The father is killed instantly, but his son can be taken to the hospital just in time. Once they are there, the surgeon stops and shouts, “Stop. I can't operate on this boy, because this is my son. ” How is that possible?

Answer: The surgeon is the boy's mother.

 

Riddle 2:

A woman with a desire to have children is infertile. She flies to the US to find a surrogate mother. On the way there, the plane crashes on an uninhabited island. Everyone is killed instantly, except the barren woman, the pilot and Leonardo Di Caprio. They are found five years later, and there are 2 children who seem to be Leonardo's. How is that possible?

Answer: The pilot is the mother.

 

All over the world, the roles of men and women are prescribed. From an early age parents, teachers, friends, culture, society, etc. dictate how girls and boys should behave, what clothes they should wear, or what toys they should play with. For example, boys are tough, busy and enterprising and girls are sweet, social and caring. The riddles show how these gender stereotypes are anchored in our thinking. Most people don't immediately think that the surgeon or pilot is a woman. We unconsciously link these professions to a biological sex. 

Tips for gender-neutral teaching

Gender neutral teaching implies that you don't make a difference between boys and girls, and that certain behaviors or aspects are not linked to being a girl or a boy. Gender neutrality can be applied in all kinds of manners, from language use to education. You will achieve a group of children that won't feel excluded and will attain more equal opportunities.If you want to include gender equality in your classroom, you can follow these tips.

 

1. Use a gender neutral language

If you want to use gender neutral language, it's important to not make a distinction between the sexes. Use neutral words like 'director' for both genders, avoiding any reference to gender or sex. Also, do not use statements that include gender stereotypes. For example, "don't you want to put on something more girly?", "Be a guy!" and "you throw like a girl".

2. Offer the child also a gender neutral choice. 

3. Involve every child (boys and girls) in every activity. 

Involve all children to the same extent during activities. This starts before the activity takes place: in communicating, addressing, handing over, etc. 

4. Stimulate cooperation between boys and girls in all aspects.

When you encourage and stimulate the cooperation between both sexes, they will see that there isn't such a thing as 'boy and girl things'.

5. Inform the children about gender norms, contraception, sexual violence and recreational rights. 

6. Try not to use gender stereotypes yourself 

A few examples: instead of dividing groups by gender, try to divide them in more creative ways. Don't use pinks and blues to represent genders, use a variety of colors for both.