1.       What do gender differences refer to?

l         Social Characteristics that distinguish men and women.

 Summary: Differences between Men & Women

l       In general, men are taller and heavier than women. In sports, men tend to outperform women in strength and speed. Women seem to have greater endurance. In spite of many attempts, sports have never become completely unisex.

l       Women are more sociable, more nurturing, more compliant and have lower self-esteem, are hard to sustain

l       Another is that girls tend to pick up auditory information while boys do better visually. Several studies suggested that, from school age on, boys outperformed girls in areas of mathematics involving abstract concepts of space, relationships and theory

l       Men, it is said, are generally more aggressive, physically and verbally, and enjoy taking risks. They play fighting games and enjoy 'dares.' More men than women are convicted for crimes, especially crimes of violence.

Group Work 2 : Discuss about “What factors determine the gender differences? (about 10 minutes)

1. Genes/Heredity(Sexual and physical differences (Men are bigger, stronger, and more aggressive than women) are determined at birth---biological differences)

2.       Physical activities and social roles(Heavy labor of men, child-rearing activities of women)

3.       Traditional stereotypes

All gender stereotypes refer to an image of what the typical member of a particular social category is like.

Do these sentences refer to men or women? (P8,Lexix 1, Book) (Individual work)

1.           Men      value power, efficiency, and achievement.

2.         The issue of competence is very important to  men      .

3.          Women    value love, communication, beauty and relationship.

4.          Women      experience fulfillment through sharing and relating.

5.          Men    feel satisfaction when they win a race, achieve a goal, or solve a problem.

6.             Women    take pride in being considerate of the needs and feelings of others.

7.          Men       are always doing things to prove themselves and develop their power and skills.

Reference for answers to traditional stereotypes or the different roles our society expect men and women to fulfill

l         Women are expected to be quite and shy while men are expected to be strong and more aggressive.

l         Women are expected to take good care of the children and do most of the housework while men are expected to be successful in their careers;

l         Women are expected to go home immediately after work while men may get back late in the evening after having dinner with their friends or colleagues.

l         A man should be masculine. He should be strong and responsible enough to protect women, children and the old in a family and in the society. He cares more about his career and success than his looks.

l         A woman should be feminine, tender, considerate and smart. She should spend more time on household affairs, on children and the old at home.

Summary

Over the past few decades, it has been proven innumerable times that the various types of behavior, emotions, and interests that constitute being masculine and feminine are patterned by both heredity and culture. In the process of growing up, each child learns hundreds of culturally patterned details of behavior that become incorporated into its gender identity. Some of this learning takes place directly. In other words, the child is told by others how to act in an appropriately feminine or masculine way. Other details of gender behavior are taught unconsciously, or indirectly, as the culture provides different images, aspirations, and adult models for girls and boys.

2.5 Group Work 3: A debate" Is there any gender prejudices in our society”? (about 20 minutes)

No

l         China has worked out and adopted a series of policies and measures to ensure that women can equally participate in the economic development, enjoy equal access to economic resources and effective services, enhance their self-development ability and improve their social and economic status. We can see the atmosphere of gender discrimination in China has improved a lot.

l         Nowadays, women in China enjoy equal employment opportunities with men and they are independent in economy.

l         Women have shown their excellence and superiority in any job you care to name. As farmers, workers, drivers, doctors, politicians and scientists and even presidents of countries they have often put men to shame.

l         Women are so conscientious [,kɔnʃi'enʃəs], 认真的；尽责的industrious[in'dʌstriəs] adj. 勤勉的and persevering that they frequently succeed brilliantly in all walks of life in addition to bearing and rearing children.

Yes

Prejudices or Biases in Education

l         Some majors favor more men than women or vice verse..　　

l         Another dimension of sex-biased education is the typical American teacher’s assumption that boys will do better in the “hard”, “masculine” subjects of math and science while girls are expected to have better verbal and reading skills. This attitude in teaching leads to boys’ problems in reading and girls’ lack of interests in science

l         Recently, a study of American public schools showed that there is a cultural bias in education that favors boys over girls. From nursery school to postgraduate courses, teachers were shown to call on males in class far more than on female students. A similar subordination [sə,bɔ:di'neiʃən] n. 附属；从属；

of female to male students has also been observed in law and medical school classrooms in recent years.

l         Research showed that sometimes teachers unknowingly prevented girls from participating as actively as boys in class by assigning them different tasks in accordance with stereotyped gender roles.

Prejudices or Biases in Employment

l         Some companies reveal that they only employ men not women, and in some companies women are paid less than the men who are in the same position with the women.

l         Female college graduates have difficulties in looking for a job. It is estimated that female college students have to send nine resumes in order to get one interview. They have to send out 44 resumes in order to locate a job. The survey also finds that 90% of female students have experienced gender prejudice when they are looking for a job.

l         Female college graduates have experienced three "difficulties" and have three "expectations" in the job market. They meet difficulties in equal employment opportunities, in gaining effective recruitment information and in changing careers. Their three "expectations" include legal protection, policy support and social support.

l         Because of gender discrimination, professional women need to be better than their male counterparts to find a job, get promoted or achieve success!

l         Nowadays, sometimes women in China do not have equal employment opportunities with men and they are not paid equally.

l         Sex prejudice does exist nowadays. For example, pregnancy is always considered as a negative factor when the management is planning the careers of the female staffs, and the female staffs might be precluded from the trainings or promotions because of this reason.

l         Such a topic seems to be talked less and less, as in modern society; it appears no longer an issue. But I bet somewhere out there sexual inequality still exists. Perhaps it's not so obvious as in old times, but

Prejudices or Biases in Other Social Aspects

l         It's somewhat still in people's beliefs that "women’ hair is long but knowledge is poor”

l         Although women around me are independent and equal to men, there also are many women suffering sex discrimination. Women in mountainous areas still burden inequality. They are not allowed to eat at the table, not allowed to attend ancestral sacrifices, and even not allowed to go outside without their husbands' or fathers' company and not allowed to talk to other men.

l         Still some people think that women are inferior, unreliable and irrational; depend too little on cool reasoning and too much on intuition to arrive at decisions.

l         Men almost entirely control top-level negotiations between countries, businesses and banks.

gender difference