Pressing for gender equality in the school curriculum

Pressing for gender equality in the school curriculum

Sophie Handloff, Guest Columnist

There are numerous aspects of society that contribute to gender inequality, one being the education of students today. This is especially true when it comes to the study of women’s roles in history. As a student at CESJDS, I have noticed an absence of education on female figures who have affected world history.

A recent example of this absence is the exciting and long-awaited World History Tournament for the tenth-grade World History II classes. Every student is assigned a historical figure from a list of choices given by the history teachers. The purpose of the assignment is to answer the question: “How did your historical figure influence world history?”

My class was given 26 choices. All 26 options were male. When we received the assignment, I excitedly scanned the list looking for people I recognized or had an interest in researching, and noticed this gender gap. Many things ran through my head, from asking if I was able to pick a figure that wasn’t on the list, to creating a big scene about how unhappy I was with the lack of gender diversity. The fact that we did not have the opportunity to choose a female figure was so unsettling that I wanted to know more about the other classes’ lists.

This year, only nine out of the 156 historical figures given to the World History II classes were female, making up only 5.7 percent of the list. The female figures on the lists were only spread between four of the six classes, leaving the other two classes with no female choices at all.

At first, some may think that these types of numbers are acceptable because of the male dominance that was considered the norm throughout much of history. In recent years, however, success at the hands of women has become more common, and many of these amazing women have been overlooked. The information I found left me feeling concerned, and I decided to address my concerns with the World History II teachers.

Despite my efforts, I was not successful in finding a way to get any women on my class list or being able to research a female figure. After hearing my concerns, however, the History department was able to assure me that in the future there would be changes to this assignment in order to put more of an emphasis on the influential female figures of history. Implementing changes like these in educational settings are crucial in order to be on the road to gender equality.

In my opinion, women played, and obviously still play, a very big role in our world. Yes, in history there have been many cases of gender inequality, but in more recent years we have had many influential women affect our world history. Women, such as the German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who was named the Time Magazine Person of the Year in 2015, have overcome the disadvantages that females have faced and are able to have a significant impact on the world.

Gender equality is something our society is still working to improve on every day. Women have been unable to receive the same opportunities as men for as long as we can remember.

Today, the disadvantages women face are very clear in everyday life. Only 24 percent of CEOs in the United States are women. Not only are women lacking in leadership positions, but women also earn 79 cents for every dollar men make, according to the Council of Economic Advisors.

There were, and still are, many women out there that deserve the chance to be in the tournament. I think such a change will help normalize the idea of an influential female figure, consequently strengthening the idea of gender equality in society.

While modifying an assignment cannot completely solve the gender inequality we see around the world today, it can be beneficial to students’ education. As the next generation grows up, preparing to run the world in all sorts of ways, they need to be educated in order to understand the fact that both men and women can change the world.

It is extremely important that we understand the influence that women have had on history so that as young people, we can bridge the current gender gap. This type of education is crucial for society in order to ensure that every individual is able to reach their full potential. All young girls need to know that they have just as much potential as all of the young boys, and that all of the opportunities that have been available for men along the way should be fair game to all of the incredible women out there who can go and change the world.

With March being National Women’s History month, it is important to acknowledge the progress that we have made as a country and as a community. There are still changes that need to be made, just as the History department is planning, in order to teach myself and my peers about how women have influenced, and will continue to influence, the world.