GENDER SENSITIVITY IN INDIA – REALITY OR MYTH
It refers to sensitizing about changing behavior and instilling empathy into the views that we hold about gender and providing equal opportunity to both the genders for social, economic and political growth. As gender pertains to the roles performed by men and women and the power relationship between them, gender affects most areas of human existence including health. The women are often at considerable disadvantage in terms of their access to resources and goods, decision-making power, choices and opportunities across all spheres of life.
Gender and sex too have a thin line of demarcation between them. When we talk simply about the biological difference between male and female, we are talking in terms of sex but when we talk with reference to the social, cultural and economic status of both, we talk in terms of gender. Women in India still suffer from gender inequality because of the lack of gender sensitization on part of males. Many of us lame that degradation of values and ethics amongst the youth is the root cause of such problems. These problems are directly or indirectly related to the lack of gender sensitivity be it the case of eve-teasing, domestic violence or the case of brutal rape. The blunt truth is whatever has percolated in young minds has finally been given to them by their socio-cultural environment which mainly includes their family, school and peers.
The major part of the responsibility for developing gender sensitization rests on the shoulders of family members and educators. They are the one who can kindle the feeling of gender equality in young girls and boys and develop the empathy for each other.
Women are considered as physically weaker sex. Physical weakness of a female can never lead a male to empower her if he is sensitive enough to realize that within her delicate and physical weak body resides a tender heart which cares for him as a mother, a sister and also as a wife. But this realization comes from how he has learnt to treat a female from his surroundings at home and at school.
Men are no longer considered to be the sole economic provider for the family. With the rise in female education, their psychological need to develop self-identity, materialistic orientation, status consciousness and the rising cost of living, married women are entering into professional career’s and at the same time taking care of the family members. The dual career life-style is on the rise and joint/extended families are being replaced by nuclear families. As a result, a new picture in marital life is emerging. Husbands are supportive of their wives participation in the workforce; they are yet to assume responsibility for sharing domestic chores. Women in India experience considerable pressure, in the morning before going out to work and after work, to do all that is necessary for the family.
CBSE serves as an excellent forum for the society to develop ‘gender sensitivity’ amongst pupil by its philosophy of co-educational schools, where girls and boys grow up together in a friendly manner feeling each other’s biological and emotional changes while passing through the age of adolescence. The learn to respect each other’s feelings and understand their psychological needs. Adolescent education programs of CBSE inclusion of life-skills in curriculum, evaluation of students in co-scholastic areas on the basis of attitude and values are some of the significant measures taken up by the CBSE.
We as educators can make a difference by developing an atmosphere in the school, where a child naturally absorbs values and ethics as he/she grows up from a kinder garden kid to a senior secondary youngster. Boys should learn through their school environment that they are not made to empower any of their girl classmates, but they are the saviors and protectors for girls in any unsafe situations. Girls should also be trained to be equally caring for their male classmates without losing their self esteem. Girls should be educated regarding domestic violence and sexual abuse so that they could face these challenges and share them with their parents and elders. This empowering education in the schools would reduce the creation of masculine norms in boys, to set themselves as different in nature from girls. This is the need of the hour to give education which could create awareness in students regarding our social and moral issues.
Source – Mrs. Rainu Ajmani