Glick, Peter, and Susan Fiske. “The Ambivalent Sexism Inventory: Differentiating Hostile and Benevolent Sexism.” Social and Personality Psychology Compass 9, no. 2 (2015). doi:10.1111/spc3.v9.2.

This journal article analyzes the nature of different types sexism in society. The authors, Peter Glick and Susan Fiske present a different point of view of sexism as we know. They differentiate hostile sexism such a catcalling from “benevolent” sexism, such as holding the door open for women but not for other men.  The harm in both of each type separate type of sexism is discussed, as this article goes into the potential consequences of such rigid gender roles. “Benevolent Sexism” may not be as straightforward or may have good intentions behind it, but this study found that even this kind of sexism can be harmful to women’s mental health and overall outlook. The subtle sexism that exists in many societies can still be detrimental to women’s success and confidence.  This study also found that men with negative attitudes and stereotypes towards women were usually less stable in their personal lives when it came to their careers and relationships. The author’s research is outlined and its very clear and concise so it is clear to the readers how they went about collecting their data. This article was interesting to me in particular because I would like to example gender differences and how individuals view their future in relation to their gender.

Langen, Annemarie Van, Roel Bosker, and Hetty Dekkers. “Exploring Cross-national Differences in Gender Gaps in Education.” Educational Research and Evaluation 12, no. 2 (2006): 155-77. doi:10.1080/13803610600587016.

This article explores the major gender difference gaps in education internationally. It was no surprise to the author of the article, Annemaria Van Langen, that the biggest achievement gap among boys and girls in school was in subjects such as math, science, technology and engineering.  The study goes into what kinds of schools are more successful when it comes to narrowing the gap between boys and girl’s achievement in various areas.  It was found that schools that typically have girls participating in STEM subjects at a young age and are encouraged relative to how their male peers are usually want to pursue a career in STEM later on.  Schools that shown qualities and activities that put their students on the same level regardless of gender typically had more girls who had a greater intrest in these subjects. However, the variation in participation in STEM subjects between genders was still significant even in more progressive schools. Male students always had a higher level of engagement in these subjects across the board. This article goes into the possible reasons this may occur and analyses the potential reasons why this happens.

Ditto, R. M.The association of parenting styles and classroom environment on the development of self-worth and behavioral competence of third and fourth grade students Available from Social Science Premium Collection. (60429706; 200220328). Retrieved from http://ezproxy.redlands.edu/docview/60429706?accountid=14729

This article discusses the relationship between children’s perceived self worth, parenting styles and the nature of different classroom environments. I found it interesting what improved and what contributed to children’s low self worth – at a young age they are very sensitive to outside factors what contribute to their self image. In terms of classroom environments, more competitive classrooms and places where academic achievement was pushed, students self worth was overall lower.  It was also found that Authoritative and generally more harsh parenting styles had a negative impact on the child’s self worth. I thought this was a pretty clear result, since being more harsh on a child definitely seems like it would have a negative reaction rather than positive. This is similar to dog training, where positive reinforcements lead to much more reliable and friendly dogs than when a dog is negatively reinforced when being trained.

Physical Education Review 1994 Vol. 17 No. 2

Author: Flintoff, A.

Journal Article: Sexism and Homophobia in Physical Education: the Challenge for Teacher Educators

I found this paper to be interesting because it really highlighted the impact of how gender is dealt with among schools and throughout educational establishments. The research in the article were in depth interviews with teachers and educational leaders. This gave a lot of inside information on understanding how gender and sex are dealt with among various classes and educational locations. The article seemed to propose that especially in physical education courses, leaders in these situations will have to address issues that may arise and advocate for gender equality. This paper seemed to have a definite opinion on the author’s perspective of the issue at hand, and went into depth about the research and the effects on students. There are few opportunities in traditional education for learning experiences on gender roles and norms in education. These norms have a great impact on how teachers choose to address their students and teach. The research in this article also suggested that female students in classrooms want to make sure they are generally portrayed and heterosexual and feminine, while male students were more focused on power dynamics and competing with other students and peers. There was much more competitiveness involved observed among male students. I thought this article was very progressive in the way the author addressed the subject of gender norms and behavior.