Gender and Education
During America’s early years, women were at best thought to be tools or a useful resource in our nation’s attempt to form their own independent educational system. Women have mostly been excluded just as many others, such as non-whites. Noah Webster stated that his idea of a good teacher was “…men of unblemished reputations.” Webster also noted that a woman should be well educated, not because of the knowledge that is gained in pursuit of a good profession but to be good company to an educated man.
Benjamin Rush was one of the more progressive proponents of female education, and yet his thoughts on educating women did not touch upon the moral obligation of America to educate all of its citizens; his reason was very practical. Rush said that they should be responsible for instructing their “sons” in the principles of liberty and government; that many times their husbands are away and the female has to care for all the affairs so she should be suitably educated with an education that would be useful to carry out those affairs in a proficient manner; that the principle instruction of children naturally falls on the woman, they should be suitably prepared with an education to carry out the duties as a mother and teacher. Rush went on to outline the different types of subjects women should study to be a good American. One of the subject s was Dance because “It promotes health and renders the figure and motions of the body easy and agreeable.”
Catharine E. Beecher, in an 1835 essay on “Female Teachers in the United States,” laid out the reasons why women should be teachers. Beecher seemed to think that women, almost by birthright, were born to be teachers. After reading this essay, I pictured thousands of angelic teachers, with large white wings and white robes, heading west and being dropped off at the places where they were needed the most. Of course, there were more practical reasons for women to become teachers before the civil war. The number of students (or potential students) greatly outnumbered the available men who were in the teaching profession. The move westward also opened the door for women to become teachers as the expansion of the country ensured the need for more teachers. Beecher was the right person in the right place to take advantage of both changing attitudes toward teaching and the significant obligations arising for teachers due to immigration and expansion.
Slavery and the unequal treatment of females in America are two parallel streams of social issues that never did cross paths, but whose commonality was based on the fact that the perpetrators of inequality were the same group within the American population. Ironically, the founding fathers of this country were men of such wisdom, foresight, and righteousness, were at the same time denying over half the population of America the fundamental rights of human beings.
The history of women in education did not lie outside the general views and practices of American social norms. Instead, it echoed the contemporary views of its time. When changes were made in the treatment of women in the workplace, the changes that were made in education fell in lockstep with those sweeping changes that were taking place in the general populace.
There are plenty of elephants in the room of gender education. These elephants are not the least invisible, but most of us choose to ignore them anyway. The fact is, women and men are different from each other from the very beginning. This difference is much broader than the differences between the races. With the modern thought of equality for all and the crippling theme of political correctness, our society ignores the fundamental difference between men and women and, as a result, tries to fit square pegs into round holes. The thought of a blanket system that would put more women in combat and other traditionally male-dominated areas of work is currently driving another wedge between the sexes. The big question about education and female should focus on which of these issues is the result of biological differences and which are based on social norms.
It is common sense that one issue (biological/social) very well may affect the other. But as we continue ahead, we should know the difference between the two. Because men a generally stronger than women, we deny individual women the right to pursue something she may do well in. Because women generally shy away from math and science in the upper grades, we would not serve an individual woman well if we steer her away from those subjects that she enjoys. We must overcome preconceived ideas that we have about gender and the decisions we make based on gender.
I don’t have problems with the gender ratio in schools today. I respect women very much because women raised me. Women such as my mother, grandmother aunts, and family friends displayed dignity, strength, and love that inspired me to do well. So I’ve witnessed firsthand the internal power of women. Some differences need to be addressed. There are significant differences between men and women. I believe in individual rights. If a woman is a good combat soldier and can pass the same physical test as men, she should be allowed to be a combat soldier. But I would never agree for a female draft (of combat soldiers). I feel that would be a huge mistake on many levels. If a woman can run track in the same time as male athletes or hit a golf ball just as far, I think that woman should go as far as her talent allows her to and that means competing in all sports with men.
But for all the men who say that conversely, they should be able to compete in woman sports, I give them a big thumbs down. Until the overall women sports performance numbers catch up to men, men should stay out of female sports altogether. That is political correctness gone wild.
As I male, I’ve always responded well to good teachers, whether they were male or female. Close to eighty percent of all public school teachers are women. That number matches the percentage that I experienced while in public school. I think both sexes have much to offer in the classroom, and the best for all students is to have a diversity of teachers that reflect the picture of general society. That is African American, European, and Asian, and Latino. And of all of those cultures, we should have an equal number of men and women. I feel that no one gender can be better than the other when it comes to teaching. A good teacher will always have a great and positive effect on a student, regardless of gender.
