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Girl or Boy Or Why?

An inquiry into our understanding of gender

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Gender And Sexuality Education Philosophy with Children Reflections on Pedagogy

13-14y+ Age Group

RHEA KUTHOORE

Oct 10, 2021 · 5 min read

Class Activity

In our class, all the children identify as either girls or boys and express their gender in unique ways. The topic of inquiry for this class was: what do each of us mean when we say that we are girls and boys. Are we referring to something tangible, definite, both, neither or more? (to explore different ideas of gender, look out for other blogs posts on gender)

We began class with a 'See, Think, Wonder' activity. First, the children noted down what they saw. Second, they wrote down what they thought about in relation to what they saw. Finally, they expressed what they wondered about in relation to what they saw.

I SEE...
Many of them saw two women.

I WONDER...
‍

What is their age?
Is the water polluted?
Is it evening or day?
What season is it?
What language are they speaking?
Is the river shallow?
Is there music playing?
Is it a romantic walk in the moonlight?
Is it a good-bye?
Is that a cigarette holder in one of their hands?
Is it Radha and Krishna?
Is there any reference to sexuality in the painting?
Are they sisters?
Are they newly wed?
Could it be a princess and worker?
Is it a friendship?
Is there a twilight/magical aura?
Is it a garden or forest?
Is there a reason behind the grey-coloured water?

After listening to each response, I pointed out to them how everyone, except one person, had inferred gender from clothing. While few children exclaimed, 'oh shit!,' others questioned: what is wrong about inferring gender from clothing? Moreover, is it not 'normal' to do so?

In response to these questions, the children shared --‍‍

As our discussion went on, some children felt that it was unfair to have separate clothing for different genders and that it did not make any sense. Some of them expressed their desire to wear clothes that did not conform to their gender. Few children, on the other hand, asked: as there are different genders, why not have different clothing that tells them apart?

These questions led us to the crux of our inquiry: what do we really talk about when we talk about gender?

The children shared their thoughts --
Some of the answers include:
‍‍

Emotions, strength, birth giving,
I have been told that I am a girl,
Chromosomes, hormones, organs,
Some of the children also mentioned
that gender is different from sex.

To think about the validity of these responses, I put together the following PPT and together, we discussed various aspects of gender.

Reflection

I realised how children are not only inquisitive about how they have come to understand themselves through the lens of gender, but also how for many of them, gender is perceived as a binary. It was crucial to go through the PPT and breakdown the ways in which the idea of biological sex and gender is taken for granted.

RHEA KUTHOORE is an educator who is passionate about facilitating philosophical and feminist thinking amongst young students.

Thinking Rhizomatically

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