Assignment 3 - Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion in the Classroom

Emma Macchabee

301388304

Simon Fraser University

EDUC 326

Professor Carolyn Mamchur

11/19/21
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Observation
For assignment #3, I chose to do option #2 as I currently volunteer at a local elementary
school and could use observations from my time there for this assignment. The past few days, I
have paid attention to how many times students of different genders are called on and supported
when needing help. My findings show that the realities described by Mary Pipher are not that
apparent in the class I work with as it is quite inclusive for both genders.

First, I observed what students were picked to read the class novel study during a language
arts block. I found that seven students raised their hands and they all got a turn, in the order:
BGGBGBG. Out of these students, 57% were female; however, it is interesting that a boy was
picked first. Next, I took note of how on-task students were during the work block after reading.
I noticed that a relatively equal amount of boys and girls had questions. When it came to how
they went about asking for help, the girls were more likely to raise their hand; whereas, the boys
would call out the teacher’s or my name. I also noticed that the boys tend to be more confident in
asking for help as some of the girls in the class sadly mask their struggles and keep to
themselves. This is why it is especially important that the teacher and I check up on everyone to
make sure they are understanding the work. The teacher I work with is very caring and his
classroom environment is fun, safe, and inclusive to all. He gives his undivided attention to
whatever student needs help regardless of gender. This is typically done by whatever respectful
hand he sees and can get to first. Lastly, I thought back to the first lesson I got to teach in the
class and what students asked questions and stayed focused. I had questions from both genders,
finding that the girls raised their hands more than the boys. I made sure to answer every one,
picking those who had a quiet hand up first. Furthermore, when it came to the activity, the girls
were more on task and determined to get the task done. This does not account for every girl in
the class though as some do get distracted just as much as the boys.

Overall, I completely understand how girls can feel left out in classrooms due to their gender;
however, I feel that the current class I am in is an enjoyable space for all where each student is
given equal opportunities. In fact, there are classroom activities being done that cater towards
girls and female empowerment which is nice to see as, for example, many of the people
discussed in social studies are men. Just the other day, they watched a movie where the main
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hero character was a powerful female. This was great to see as so many other films dismiss
females and highlight male heroes.

When conversing with peers on their observations in my group’s discussion, there was
overlap in our findings regarding the behaviour of different genders in the classroom and which
one gets more attention from the teacher. We concluded that boys tend to be more confident than
girls, but girls still receive equal attention and, in our findings, even more chances than boys to
answer questions. Therefore, based on our research, there have been positive changes to Mary
Pipher’s realities.

Personal Reflection
Being a female, I have faced many instances of sexism in my life. In classes, I never felt that
the teacher was biased against me, but students definitely were. The main thing that I
encountered was various traditional female stereotypes. Below are two stories regarding my
experiences with sexist stereotypes.

First of all, in grade six, I went through a phase where I was quite a “tomboy.” I loved sports
and never wanted to wear dresses or jewelry. For a field trip one day, we had to go to court and
dress up formally for it. I did not want to wear a dress, so I opted for a fancier shirt and some
leggings. Unfortunately, I got teased for this decision by classmates asking why I was not
“dressed like a girl.” It frustrated me that they would say something like that as clothes should
not define one’s gender.

The second story comes from a form of discrimination that I faced multiple times in my
educational journey, being considered weak because I was a girl in gym class. As mentioned
earlier, I loved sports and would always try my absolute hardest in the gym. I always wanted to
play the more intense sports when given an option, which would normally consist of only boys. I
enjoyed the sports, however, because I was a girl, I was rarely passed to by the boys in games. In
one class, we were playing ultimate frisbee and I actually started getting passed to. I was doing
well and one boy commented “pass to Emma she is actually good.” While I am sure he was
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trying to be nice, this comment kind of stung because it implied that I was an exception to a girl’s
athletic abilities as the boys automatically assumed I was bad.

All in all, I completely understand the feeling of being left out or not as successful because of
my gender. Although we have come a long way in terms of gender equality, there is still a long
way to go as our society is heavily built upon productive (male) processes, not reproductive
(female) ones, and hurtful stereotypes still exist.