Gender Differences- Discussion

Gender differences discussion

Discuss the following questions in the order below, skipping any you find too difficult.

• Who has a better life in your country, women or men?
• How much of a glass ceiling is there in your country? What are the reasons for it, and could it change?
• How else are men and women different in your country? How have things changed?
• How do those things compare to other countries, do you think?
• Are gender differences mainly innate (e.g. genetic) or mainly due to upbringing, do you think? Which differences might be innate?
• What things most need to be changed in your country to make the sexes more equal?
• What do you think about efforts to reduce sexism by changing the language that we use?

Choose one gender difference on the next page and say how acceptable or unacceptable you think it is. Your partner will then give their opinion.

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Possible gender differences

• Ambitions for a child/ Pressure on a child to succeed
• Amount of childcare in a family
• Amount of housework in a family
• Being a gentleman (opening doors, carrying luggage etc)
• Being a priest/ High level positions in a religion
• Being expected to wear a skirt or tie at school or at work
• Changing family name after marriage
• Combat troops
• Compulsory military service
• Control of household finances
• Controlling household finances
• Custody of the children after a divorce
• Decision making in a family
• Disapproval if someone has an affair
• Disapproval if someone has pre-marital sex
• Disapproval when someone uses slang, e.g. swearing
• Discounts
• Entry to certain places, e.g. private clubs or gyms
• Expectations about being the main breadwinner
• Expectations about when you will get married
• How you are expected to dress in public
• How you dress babies, e.g. colours of baby clothes
• Inheritance
• Jobs that you expect kids to do about the house
• Language, e.g. use of polite language
• Looking after elderly parents/ in-laws
• Making important family decisions
• Marriage vows
• Maternity leave/ Paternity leave
• Paying in restaurants and bars
• Pressure to drink
• Questions about plans to start a family
• Recruitment for dangerous jobs
• Recruitment for manual labour
• Recruitment for work with small children
• Rules about jewellery, e.g. banning only men from wearing earrings
• Spending on a child’s education
• Sports you do at school
• Subjects studied, e.g. Home Economics and woodwork
• Taking parents’ names
• The age at which teenagers are allowed to do things, e.g. stay out late or travel abroad
• Toys you buy young kids
• Uniforms/ Working clothes
• What time children are expected to be home
• Who becomes monarch next