My high school was until very recently all-female, and was still working on attracting male students when I attended. Including myself, my graduating class was 25% male. Girls were required to wear skirts (no more than two inches above the knee, though you know that was violated all the time) or extremely fugly shorts, and guys had pants or shorts that ripped in the crotch before autumn break. Both sexes had to wear shirts (different styles) that were nearly transparent white--girls were required to wear white bras, which didn't work so well since most of them were dark-skinned.
The number of fights dropped when boys started attending the school, and I saw a lot more sexual harrassment perpetrated by the girls than by the boys (I doubt the administration thought about "ease of flashing" when requiring skirts). I got a lot of crap from both sexes because I refused to do the "macho" things the other boys were doing in an attempt to maintain their masculinity in the female-dominated setting. There was no attempt at gender education such as you describe--it was a Catholic school, and while much more lenient than most people imagine a Catholic school being, it still had many of the stigmas attached--just one optional "health" class that included some basic sex ed.
Even now, when the gender ratio is approaching 50-50, it's still very much a girls' school. Instead of "Miss, can I go to the bathroom?" you get "Miss, can I go change my pad? ...Hey, does anyone have a pad I can use? No, not that kind. Yeah, that--throw it here? Thanks, bye!" I've been privy to conversations in the middle of homeroom where the girls go around and loudly share about their first period or their sexual conquests.
Many girls and boys at my school were not interested in persuing a "half-way decent education;" they were there because their parents sent them there and they would have rather been in the (very much male-dominated) public schools. Because of this, the teachers and administration had to work very hard to allow those of us--female AND male--who wanted a half-way decent education the opportunity to get one while giving the less ambitious among us enough learning to get by in the world.
I guess my point is that I'm having a hard time believing that male-dominated co-education is a statistically unavoidable result of the co-educational system; girls will dominate the system just as easily--and in much the same manner--as boys if given the opportunity. The issue isn't about gender roles so much as the proper atmosphere (and I honestly don't think classes about "gender awareness" are going to do the trick, though they may be a symptom of the attitude necessary).
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branchandroot
no subject
Date: 2005-09-17 06:31 pm (UTC)The number of fights dropped when boys started attending the school, and I saw a lot more sexual harrassment perpetrated by the girls than by the boys (I doubt the administration thought about "ease of flashing" when requiring skirts). I got a lot of crap from both sexes because I refused to do the "macho" things the other boys were doing in an attempt to maintain their masculinity in the female-dominated setting. There was no attempt at gender education such as you describe--it was a Catholic school, and while much more lenient than most people imagine a Catholic school being, it still had many of the stigmas attached--just one optional "health" class that included some basic sex ed.
Even now, when the gender ratio is approaching 50-50, it's still very much a girls' school. Instead of "Miss, can I go to the bathroom?" you get "Miss, can I go change my pad? ...Hey, does anyone have a pad I can use? No, not that kind. Yeah, that--throw it here? Thanks, bye!" I've been privy to conversations in the middle of homeroom where the girls go around and loudly share about their first period or their sexual conquests.
Many girls and boys at my school were not interested in persuing a "half-way decent education;" they were there because their parents sent them there and they would have rather been in the (very much male-dominated) public schools. Because of this, the teachers and administration had to work very hard to allow those of us--female AND male--who wanted a half-way decent education the opportunity to get one while giving the less ambitious among us enough learning to get by in the world.
I guess my point is that I'm having a hard time believing that male-dominated co-education is a statistically unavoidable result of the co-educational system; girls will dominate the system just as easily--and in much the same manner--as boys if given the opportunity. The issue isn't about gender roles so much as the proper atmosphere (and I honestly don't think classes about "gender awareness" are going to do the trick, though they may be a symptom of the attitude necessary).