The Limited Times

Now you can see non-English news...

Pink or blue? There are more colors to educate children

2022-12-06T11:11:57.016Z


Stereotypes about gender issues range from aspects that seem insignificant to how minors are required to manage their emotions. Favoring equal leisure, providing equality models or supervising the content they consume supports their individuality


The blue clothes are for boys and the pink ones are for girls.

Sadness is feminine and anger is masculine.

Colors or emotions are part of how society can pigeonhole people based on their gender.

A family with two brothers of the opposite sex is the ideal breeding ground for educating them in a framework of equality or quite the opposite.

However, it is not easy to escape from the feminine or masculine social roles that are assigned from birth, since beliefs condition actions and one is not always aware of it.

“Language, purchases or tastes are the result of having grown up in a sexist society, not always with bad intentions, but with the inertia of habit.

The starting point is to become aware of inequality to start the path of transformation”, indicates Mar Romera,

Families with siblings of different genders may unconsciously perpetuate certain roles with their children.

Parents often affirm that, at home, sons and daughters receive equal treatment, but according to Romera this is not true, because what one is not aware of does not exist: "Stereotyped behaviors and beliefs make us They accompany each decision and it must be taken into account that the family is not the only socializing agent in gender issues.

The media or social networks have become the pendulum that sets the tempo of habits and customs that, in many cases, are loaded with stereotypes”, continues Romera.

More information

Mar Romera, pedagogue: “Homework is illegal.

Children have the right to play and free time”

For the expert, a lot can be done from schools because, on too many occasions, the interests of boys and girls are focused on those issues, tastes, preferences or habits that they live in their family and social environment: "The life of students is a reflection of their experiences at home.

It is about setting an example of fairness and respect in a regulated environment, because if we help them identify inequalities we will be helping them avoid them”.

Gender equality in school education is another pending issue.

According to a study carried out by Mario Castillo and Ronny Gamboa, researchers from the University of Costa Rica, in 2013, teachers tend to pay more attention and speak more to boys than to girls in the classroom.

Mercedes Bermejo, member of the Official College of Psychology of Madrid, identifies the social differences according to sex in matters such as the tendency to treat girls in a sweeter and more affectionate way.

“Or they are comforted more and allowed to express their emotions more;

their autonomy is less reinforced;

they are asked for more responsibility in household chores or less physical activity, while children tend to be treated with more emotional distance;

they are promoted to better tolerate pain;

Educating siblings of different genders in a framework of equality can be achieved with some guidelines such as those indicated by the psychologist Mercedes Bermejo.

  • Reflect as adults if an egalitarian education is offered or if gender differences are being established.

  • Dialogue with children about issues that may arise on a day-to-day basis regarding gender equality issues, for example through messages in stories, situations about coexistence or that can be seen in movies.

  • Offer the same affection to both and give freedom so that they can react as they wish and without conditioning when expressing their emotions, regardless of their gender.

  • Supervise the content that minors consume through technology.

    We take great care of who enters the house, but not so much who does it through the screens and it is convenient that they do not accede to sexist stereotypes.

  • Provide appropriate models of equality, because the example at home is essential for children.

    It is advisable to establish roles for the mother and father that are far from gender stereotypes and that advocate sharing the tasks and responsibilities of daily life on equal terms.

  • Promote equal leisure among siblings so that, regardless of their gender, each one chooses what they like best;

    uncensored.

  • Equitably distribute homework and not conditioned by gender roles.

    In this sense, the activity can be rotated so that both brothers do everything that the other does.

The brain of boys and girls, a blank sheet

The mind is born clean and develops according to the stimulation it receives.

Capacities are human and not masculine or feminine.

“Although there are obvious physical differences between boys and girls, there is no distinction between their aptitudes for issues such as directing, organizing, managing information or for linguistic and mathematical reasoning, nor for emotional development, such as empathy or a sense of solidarity ”, says Olga Barroso, an expert psychologist in gender violence, trauma and attachment and author of the book

Neither pink nor blue

.

“The brain is born with all the neurons, but not connected.

So the mental structure is acquired with stimulation," she adds. So, according to the expert, if a girl is told to attend to the emotions of others, she will tend to do so, but just as if she were asked to child: "The two of them will end up having a great level of empathy," says Barroso.

Society determines and shapes the choices of children according to their sex.

"The pressure is so great that, implicitly, we are pushing boys to one side and girls to the other, so in the end they are going to ask you for different things, but not because of their gender," he says. And he gives an example: If a girl, from her freedom, loves to play with dolls, just as if she liked sports, her preferences and choices must be supported, because her peculiarities are as people, not because of being a man or a woman. 

You can follow Mamas & Papas on

Facebook

,

Twitter

or sign up here to receive

our biweekly newsletter

.

Source: elparis

All news articles on 2022-12-06

You may like

Trends 24h

Latest

© Communities 2019 - Privacy

The information on this site is from external sources that are not under our control.
The inclusion of any links does not necessarily imply a recommendation or endorse the views expressed within them.