It is generally understood that while progress has been made, there is still a glass ceiling for women in business and in most areas of life. In sports, the girls versions are rarely given the marketing, financing or support as the boys. Change has to start when we are young, and books with strong female characters could be a great beginning.
We take great care in our decisions about educating children, even trying not to use gender when selecting toys for our children. The concepts they gain while young and impressionable can last a lifetime. But we do not pay much attention to the very powerful world of reading.
Mothers are the stabilizing family force in most households. But when it comes to the status of the family, the man is usually held forward as the bread-winning provider. This is a traditionally patriarchal society, but the image portrayed is one of male superiority, not responsibility.
When not involved reading fairy tales depicting the fragile women waiting to be saved by the handsome prince, children watch television. In show after show girls play a supporting, often subservient role, and the commercials that interrupt have an even more unflattering image of ladies.
Even textbooks provide few examples of women contributing to history. In high school and college athletics even women accept that male sports get more financing and attention. When it comes to the business world, the notion of the glass ceiling is taught at an early age.
The answer is to get real about how we live our lives and show children that everybody working together is the right answer. Not every show has to be a documentary, nor is politically correctness always needed, but the balance needs to shift. Books with strong female characters are a way we can start teaching children the importance of valuing people as individuals.
We take great care in our decisions about educating children, even trying not to use gender when selecting toys for our children. The concepts they gain while young and impressionable can last a lifetime. But we do not pay much attention to the very powerful world of reading.
Mothers are the stabilizing family force in most households. But when it comes to the status of the family, the man is usually held forward as the bread-winning provider. This is a traditionally patriarchal society, but the image portrayed is one of male superiority, not responsibility.
When not involved reading fairy tales depicting the fragile women waiting to be saved by the handsome prince, children watch television. In show after show girls play a supporting, often subservient role, and the commercials that interrupt have an even more unflattering image of ladies.
Even textbooks provide few examples of women contributing to history. In high school and college athletics even women accept that male sports get more financing and attention. When it comes to the business world, the notion of the glass ceiling is taught at an early age.
The answer is to get real about how we live our lives and show children that everybody working together is the right answer. Not every show has to be a documentary, nor is politically correctness always needed, but the balance needs to shift. Books with strong female characters are a way we can start teaching children the importance of valuing people as individuals.
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