Today I introduced the idea of lenses - gender lenses in particular - as a way to analyze media and other texts. I was inspired by some articles in Rethinking Popular Culture and Media (thanks Dr. Bogad!) and broke my students into (mixed-gender) groups and told them a phrase, either "act like a lady" or "man up."This was their launch into a word splash about what society says it means to be a girl/lady/woman/female or boy/guy/man/male. Some got right to work listing off common stereotypes while others had a more difficult time. I couldn't tell if it was just a few of my male students being their usual goofy selves or if the question really did make them uncomfortable, but these boys did have a much harder time being serious and naming these societal norms.
I definitely have some more observations to do. But for now, here they are, telling it like it is...
