Gender Equity in Education Essay -- Equality Feminism Science Mathemat

Gender Equity in Education Gender equity issues in mathematics and science have been the focus of many educators and researchers for years. Women have often been denied an equal education in math and science for many reasons. Parents and teachers must realize this fact and change their habits wherever necessary. Girls must be given the same opportunity as boys from the beginning, particularly in math and science where girls tend to lag behind. First of all, the term gender equity must be defined. Gender not only includes the concept of sex, but all the social and cultural meanings that go along with being either male or female. Every interaction that takes place is in relation to the sex of those involved in it, therefore sex may be considered central to those interactions. Equity is "justice, impartiality, the giving or desiring to give each person his or her due." Gender equity may then be defined as being free from any kind of discrimination based on sex; males and females considered equal in every possible way (Hilke & Conway-Gerhardt, 1994). Gender equity has been addressed in many schools, articles and books in the past and is still an issue today. One idea that must be considered is the difference that exists between girls and boys in the areas of math and science. Many ideas are involved in the issue of why girls are behind boys in math and science. The first factor is how parents treat their children. Parents have one of the greatest, if not the greatest influence, on their children’s lives and life choices. Their attitudes about such things as traditional jobs for women and treating girls differently than boys when dealing with school will often effect their children, especially their d... ...titt, B.A. (1988). Building Gender Fairness in Schools. Carbondale: Southern Illinois University Press. 4. The Mid-Atlantic Equity Consortium. (2000). Beyond Title IX: Gender Equity Issues in Schools. Retrieved March 20, 2001 from the World Wide Web: http://www.maec.org/beyond.html. 5. Advocates for Women in Science, Engineering and Mathematics. Gender Equity. Retrieved March 21, 2001 from the World Wide Web: http://www.awsem.com/gnature.html. 6. University Libraries, University of Iowa. (1998). Overview of Title IX. Retrieved March 20, 2001 from the World Wide Web: http://bailiwick.lib.uiowa.edu/ge/Title_IX.html 7. Salomone, R.C. (1997, October 8). Sometimes ‘Equal’ Means ‘Different’. Education Week. Retrieved March 20, 2001 from the World Wide Web: http://www.edweek.org/ew/1997/06salom.h17.