14. Notes from a Seminar on Gender Quest

Last month, 03 September 2011, I had attended a seminar on Gender Quest in Multiple Intelligences at Farook Training College, Kozikkode.  The following are notes made during the Seminar which provides food for thought.

*Globally, the proportion of students joining courses in  Science and Technology  shows a  decrease.

*In India, student interest in Science decline as they climb the education ladder.

*In Kerala,  girls perform better in Board exams and boys perform well in Entrance exams. Girls perform better in homework, assignments and Course Work, but boys outshine girls when tested on the same content.

“The surest  way to keep a people down is to educate the men and neglect the women. If you educate a man you simply educate an individual, but if you educate a woman you educate a family.”

-Dr. J. E. Kwegyir Aggrey (1875-1927), a visionary Gandhian educator

External Benefits of Education

Benefit Type	Findings
Child education	Parental schooling affects child’s schooling level and  Achievement
Fertility	Mother’s education is inversely related to daughter’s birth
Crime	Education reduces criminal activity
Desired family size	Schooling improves contraceptive efficiency

                                                                    -Wolfe and Zuvekas 1977

 A verse illustrating Gender stereotypes in Curriculum

In my textbooks I learned that only men are kings and soldiers

Till I read a book in which famous queens ruled and fought against enemies

In my textbooks, I learned only men are doctors

When I went to a doctor I saw that she was a woman

In my textbooks, I learned that only men do farming in my country

Until on a train journey I saw women working in the fields.

Can sitting in the same class room, reading the same text book, listening to the same teacher prove useful?