Evolving Education

""> The socialization of gender is such an unconscious process in our society that is difficult to determine when and how it actually takes place. Certainly a large part of socialization comes from exposure to the media. Children’s programs on television usually portray boys and girls very differently, taking care to make a distinction between Dora the Explorer and her cousin Diego, for instance. Dora wears a pink shirt, a bracelet, and a purple backpack while Diego has shorter hair and wears traditional boys clothes with his orange rescue pack. Still, both characters travel through imaginary worlds and have adventures involving some sort of admirable goal, because in modern education there is an emphasis on encouraging both boys and girls to have dreams and take on challenging, respectable roles in society. The media, and not just children’s programs, but major network shows and news programs as well, seems to be an easy place to develop equality between men and women and present new ideas regarding the concept of gender. So, if it were the primary force of gender socialization in society, gender might be a much more progressive notion than it evidently is in general practice. However, children also take much of their knowledge of gender from the examples around them, namely their family and other close role models. Most of the family similarities between one generation and the next, such as mannerisms and speech patterns, are learned through experience. Similarly, the socialization of gender is accomplished through the roles that a child’s male and female role models play in society. If a mother does all of the housework without question, her children are likely to believe that women are responsible for cleaning and laundry as a part of who they are. However, if a father does a good share of the cleaning and laundry and encourages the children to do their part as well, they will be less likely to view these tasks as gender-oriented. Today women are able to hold the same jobs as men, and certain qualities that were previously considered solely feminine, such as an interest in fashion, have become acceptable for men as well. Still, the concept of gender in the Western World is largely dichotomous, with room for a only a few exceptions and deviations. Even while tolerance is increasing, traditional views have strong roots in generations of rituals and rites of passage. Furthermore, the sources of power for men and women typically come from their differences. Neither gender can be described without listing its differences from the other. Men’s roles of superiority in past centuries were a motivation to continue the socialization of masculine and feminine characteristics, so that women understood their place of submission. Meanwhile, women have often created their own sub-cultures with hierarchies based on social class and economic status. Wealthier women were able to stay home and care for their children and their home, so these more “feminine” traits came to be associated with more powerful women. Today, however, powerful women are often thought of as those who are a part of the workforce, and such new associations of power are changing the characteristics that are associated with gender and, though more slowly, the process by which we are socialized to these concepts.