Importance of Gender Sensitisation programmes at School

Girls are weak! Boys are brave! Often, you must have heard this statement.

Google.com

                In a patriarchal society like ours, we create contrasting gender roles that lead to discrimination and devaluation of girls and women. Stereotyping that promotes gender inequity, which later leads to acceptance of imbalances in power. The root of the problem stems from negative influences on a child’s attitude and perception. Gender identities are defined as children grow and are influenced by the situation at home, from their parents, and at school, from their peers and teachers. This at times leads to discrimination and questionable gender roles — Children internalise the myth that boys are strong, while girls are vulnerable.

We are no strangers to news about young girls being molested. Disha was five-years-old when she was first abused by a boy who was barely three times her age. Disha’s case isn’t a lone instance; there are thousands who share a similar story. Child sexual abuse isn’t restricted to lonely corners and eerie hours. It has become a very real possibility that could also occur in ‘happy homes’ and within ‘the best of primary schools’. The degree of abuse might vary, but that does not make the problem any less serious.

A study conducted by World Vision India in 2017, shows that one in every two girl children face some form of abuse. In fact, a few research studies show, one in three people agree that control over another is not considered a form of violence or abuse. There is no denying the seriousness of the issue, especially with the increasing rate of offenses involving children under the age of ten.

A Change in Outlook is Essential

Several conservative families in India continue to function in a certain way — sons are encouraged to study, while daughters are taught to spend their extra hours on domestic chores at home. There is nothing wrong in protecting girls and in encouraging boys to be courageous. However, binding them into gender ‘straitjackets’ and pushing them into corners is flawed, leading to extreme instances of girls becoming submissive and boys becoming fearless, all for the wrong reasons.

Certain ways of life are rarely questioned and are followed blindly. For instance, mothers would say that girls must be protected, but they would never tell their children what rape or molestation actually is. There’s a need to pass on proper information. How their bodies are different, how they need to stay safe, what gender equality means and how they must be treated by the society. This is where gender sensitization as a part of school education becomes important. It is vital that children are encouraged to understand the concept of gender equality in their formative years.

Create Awareness through specific lesson plans at Schools

There is a pressing need for awareness pro-grammes that must be conducted in densely populated villages, suburbs, and cities. Both high schools and primary schools must start realising this problem to combat the unfortunate condition by introducing gender sensitisation as a part of their school education curriculum. Awareness about gender roles, body safety rules, and abuse are some basics to be taught in growing years. While a few schools have already started planning out a few initiatives, more needs to be done. To win the war, these awareness programmes need to reach out to every single child athwart the country. Through the collective efforts of the school management and parents, we can hope to create a safer environment for children.

Some heart-aching facts

1.Currently, India stands a lowly 125th out of 159 ranked countries — United Nations’ gender inequality index.

2. Female child mortality rate is 17% higher than that of boys, while the male literacy rate (82%) is far higher than the female rate (65%) in India

3. The World Economic Forum’s (WEF) Global Gender Gap Report stated that India fell 21 places on the index to 108, far below the global average and much behind its neighbors China and Bangladesh.

4.As per the latest data from National Crime Records Bureau, the crime rate against women rose from 41.7% to 53.9%, between 2011 and 2015.

5. Up to 3,27,394 cases were reported in 2015 alone, including 34,651 cases of rape, 4,437 cases of attempted rape, 59,277 kidnapping and abductions, 7,634 dowry deaths, and a whopping 1,13,403 cases of domestic cruelty, among others.

By Dr. Chakraborty, CEO at Fiinovation/ Social entrepreneur.