Early childhood is the most important phase of development of a person’s life. This is when cognitive, social and emotional skills are learned, influencing lifelong educational achievement, health and well-being. When young girls and boys are denied access to the opportunities, care and services they need to thrive and develop to their full potential, this affects the rest of their lives.
We all want our children to grow up to be caring, thoughtful and accepting individuals. Part of this means raising them to believe in and stand for gender equality.
How do we create a world free from gender discrimination?
Edify International School has come up with a Gender Sensitive Program to make a more gender-sensitive environment, bust stereotypes, and make our children, whether girls or boys, more gender-friendly.
1. Our Educators uniquely show students they have a choice when it comes to forming their own identity, to break the norms that society has laid before them which prevent equal opportunities in their lives.
2. We teach our students that all individuals are equal irrespective of their behavioural traits, or gender. We dissociate terms that are specified for a certain gender and teach our students to judge a person- male, female or non-binary- as an individual with a makeup of characteristics and valid perceptions.
3. We teach students to recognize gender bias in language when they hear or see it. For example,phrases like “Be a man” or “Act like a woman”, are heard in daily conversations. We hold discussions about the way gender bias has wormed its way into our everyday language, and how continued use of it perpetuates the bias that inspired them in the first place.
We all want our children to grow up to be caring, thoughtful and accepting individuals. Part of this means raising them to believe in and stand for gender equality.
How do we create a world free from gender discrimination?
Edify International School has come up with a Gender Sensitive Program to make a more gender-sensitive environment, bust stereotypes, and make our children, whether girls or boys, more gender-friendly.
1. Our Educators uniquely show students they have a choice when it comes to forming their own identity, to break the norms that society has laid before them which prevent equal opportunities in their lives.
2. We teach our students that all individuals are equal irrespective of their behavioural traits, or gender. We dissociate terms that are specified for a certain gender and teach our students to judge a person- male, female or non-binary- as an individual with a makeup of characteristics and valid perceptions.
3. We teach students to recognize gender bias in language when they hear or see it. For example,phrases like “Be a man” or “Act like a woman”, are heard in daily conversations. We hold discussions about the way gender bias has wormed its way into our everyday language, and how continued use of it perpetuates the bias that inspired them in the first place.
Children, who have been taught the importance of gender sensitivity tend to develop into accepting individuals, standing against discrimination of any kind and helping create a better society to live in. We, as parents and educators, need to come together to make our kids socially and psychologically aware of the social evils and raise them to bring about positive change in the world.
Its time gender sensitivity gets the place it deserves in our society, and the best way to promote this is to instil in our kids the importance of equality in all walks of life.