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Sabrina Zatarain
NancyLee Bergey & Gillian Maimon
EDUC555 Advanced Field Seminar (Elementary & Secondary Education)
30 January 2018

Integrative Curriculum: Rationale

According to a study conducted by Lenore J. Weitzman and Diane Rizzo in 1974, the

percentage of illustrations of females in textbooks in the second grade was a mere 32%. “The

world of boys is shown as one of action and energy; the world of girls is shown as one of

passivity, watching, and waiting for boys. While men are shown in over 150 occupational roles,

almost all the women in textbooks are housewives” (Weitzman and Rizzo 1). Despite slight

advances for women in recent years, it is no surprise that even current curriculum content is still

heavily male-dominated, especially when it need not be. As a teacher in a second grade

classroom, a large portion of the standards that students are required to complete by the end of

the term concern informational texts. As of January, students in my classroom have read three

biographies about three different male figures and explored speeches and narratives sopken and

written by men. Did students absorb content after engaging in these activities? Yes. Did students

strengthen foundational skills? Yes. Were mandates met? Yes. Could students have learned

content and practiced foundational skills while still meeting state mandates and standards using a

text about a women written by a women? Easily.

It has been more than 50 years since President John F. Kennedy signed the Equal Pay

Act, yet women continue to make less than their male counterparts. For years, instances of sexual

harassment and sexual assault have been concealed from the public eye. Now, in the current

climate, as women begin to speak out against gender inequality, it is important that women

occupy a space in the elementary curriculum. I, myself, as a female student in a profession

traditionally dominated by woman find this subject matter of particular importance. While
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children may not necessarily be entirely attentive to such issues, change is upon us, and many

people, even second graders, are beginning to take notice. Although, I am new to Andrew

Jackson School and have known my second grade students for no longer than a month, it is clear

that men dominate the curriculum. It should also be noted that the female students are active in

the fight for women’s rights as many of them participated in the Women’s March on

Philadelphia in January. The students have studied historical figures such as Martin Luther King

Jr., Abraham Lincoln, and Theodore Roosevelt. Granted, all are important figures who have

made grand contributions to society, but it is crucial that students know that figures like Rosa

Parks, Hillary Clinton, and Susan B. Anthony have made contributions to society of equal or

greater stature and often times, they are overlooked in academia and in daily life. Students must

not only know about the great contributions these women have made, but they must also know

why they are not talked about with the same fervor as those of their male counterparts. “Feminist

pedagogy is committed to building a perspective that explores the interlocking systems of bias”

(Hall and Sandler 39). Bias aside, such a topic offers opportunities for innumerable connections,

as women from all over have influenced their communities, their countries, and the world around

them. Women from fields such as science, mathematics, history, etc. have made significant

contributions that should be made known and be studied. And although often overlooked, there

are countless grade-appropriate texts regarding women figures that can serve as useful resources

for students. Such texts may allow students to not only learn about female figures, but to

generate change just as these women have. Second grade students, especially second grade girls,

should be aware of the contributions made by women so that they may feel empowered and

capable in order to precipitate change as they encounter an imperfect world. Students must see

that by learning about influential women that they, too, despite their gender, have the ability to
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make a difference in their community and beyond. They must know that that their opinions,

thoughts, and ideas matter and that they can have practical, real-world implications. “An

important focus is to help change students’ negative attitudes about women, including women’s

negative attitudes about themselves” (Hall and Sandler 40).

As we enter March, Women’s History Month, it seems like the perfect opportunity to

engage students in a thematic unit that is hyper-relevant to not only the current climate, but to

themselves. “Feminist pedagogy considers personal biography and experience important to

learning; it legitimates life experience as an appropriate subject of intellectual inquiry. It also

assumes that students learn better when they recognize the relevance of material to their lives”

(Hall and Sandler 40). Female students are likely to encounter issues that women in the world

face everyday. By learning about strong female figures, I am hopeful that they may accumulate a

wealth of knowledge so that they may seek to find solutions that will ultimately better the world

for all. Meanwhile, male students must learn to recognize this disparity and join the movement to

dismantle gender inequality. As Alice E. Ginsberg, editor of The Evolution of American

Women’s Studies, explained to Inside Higher Ed, the purpose of a feminist pedagogy is “to make

visible what has been invisible and to make conscious what has been overlooked or silenced”

(Diamond). If it is our role as educators to ensure that every student, despite their gender, race,

ethnicity, sexual orientation, etc. be educated so that he/she may be treated with respect and

kindness as they pursue any path they may choose, we must first provide them with the tools and

knowledge to dismantle a society that bars that from occurring in the first place.
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Bibliography

Diamond, Anna. “Making the Invisible Visible.” Slate.com. The Slate Group LLC, 2018. Web.

Accessed 4 Feb. 2018.

Hall, Roberta M., and Bernice R. Sandler. “The Classroom Climate: A Chilly One for Women?.”

(1982).

Weitzman, Lenore J., and Diane Rizzo. “Biased Textbooks: Images of Males and Females in

Elementary School Textbooks in Five Subject Areas; What You Can Do about Biased

Textbooks.” (1974).