Goals
Brief description of the issue
A strong endorsement of gender stereotypes is associated with higher school dropout rates, for boys as well as for girls. It also models how boys and girls perceive what society expects from men and women, and from themselves according to their gender. In the long term, perpetuation of gender stereotypes is preventing us from reaching gender equality. It is therefore important to put specific activities on this topic in place to break down gender stereotypes with students.
This lesson plan named The Girl in the Mirror is promoted by MediaSmarts, “a Canadian not-for-profit charitable organization for digital and media literacy. Our vision is that children and youth have the critical thinking skills to engage with media as active and informed digital citizens.”
According to the website’s description, “in this lesson, students look at how gender stereotyping may discourage young women from becoming involved in politics”, which can be integrated in an history or citizenship education lesson.
Teachers can also find here how this activity helps developing cross-curricular competencies as well as subject-specific competencies.
You can download the activity directly on MediaSmarts’ website or in the “Documents” section below.