Gender sensitivity curriculum introduced in select schools
Cham cham chanda, tim tim taarey, Mere Mummy Papa nyarey Dono mil kar khana pakayein Dono mil kar ghar ko sajayein Din me dono kaam pe jaatey Shaam ko mere saath vo khelte Mummy kehti papa achhey Papa kehte mummy achhi Mein kehta dono hain achhey
This is no ordinary jingle, but an example of the gender sensitive text that has been introduced in some schools of the city from this academic session.
As part of a sensitisation exercise supported by UNICEF, social organisation Saajhi Duniya is conducting special classes at select schools to introduce the concept to students from a young age.
Special curriculum has been designed for this purpose for Classes nursery to 12 and in each category, one government and one private school has been chosen. Special classes have been introduced in these schools from May 1. The pilot project will last till October.
Saajhi Duniya secretary professor Roop Rekha Verma said, “We have been stressing the need for gender sensitive changes in the curriculum for past many years. A close analysis of the existing text in schools shows that there is a lot of gender disparity in the text being taught to children.”
Citing examples, she said, “In every story or rhyme, a mother is always shown working at home, while the male is projected as the earning member of the family. Women are depicted as being meant for kitchen and household tasks. Even at senior level when children are taught about great personalities and history, it is only about the achievements of great men. Mentions of numerous women achievers are rare.”
It took rigorous research and creativity to draft new texts for all classes. Then, training of those who would take the classes was also carried out.
“It took us six months to design the course. We have tried to bring in people from theatre, some sensitive teachers and people from a cross-section of society to be a part of the project,” said prof Verma.
As a pilot initiative, a slot of 10 hours per week has been requested from the chosen schools for the special sessions, which will be conducted by a team of trained resource persons. In addition to simple delivery of text and distribution of study material, various activities and exercises too have been planned to hold the students’ attention, prof Verma said.
“A survey of sensitivity among students regarding gender issues has been designed for various levels. It will be carried out before and after the course to assess the change,” she added