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Around the world, feminism is considered a prominent issue in society because of the lack of equality between men and women.  Throughout the history of the United States, women have gained more and more equality as the years have passed. However, today, there are still issues that question whether women are truly equal to men in all aspects of society and are both given equal opportunities in life. Feminism exists throughout many aspects of our lives at school, such as in several of our extra curricular activities here at Pine Crest. Everyone at school is given equal opportunities to excel in whatever extra curricular activities they chose no matter the gender. For example, Sofia Caro, one of the students here at Pine Crest, is given the opportunity to play on the football team, where she is treated as an equal among her teammates, and definitely shows her talent and passion for football.

There are many disputes over what kind of role feminism should have in a classroom setting and whether it should be taught to students. In an email interview, Kaely Malik, a senior, said, “I think that feminism should always be addressed whenever appropriate, which can include the classroom depending on the subject matter. I would expect that today everyone should be aware of and respect feminism, so it’s not the teacher’s job to educate on this issue. However, whenever applicable, teachers should reinforce and support it.” Mr. Walters, the Head of the Upper School, also addressed this issue in an interview. When asked what place he thinks feminism has in the classroom and how it should be included in the curriculum he said, “It is our responsibility as global citizens of this world to consider and understand the perspectives and experiences of all people. Many groups throughout history have been mistreated or not given the same opportunities as others and that’s wrong. So with that being said, understanding the fact that equal rights and justice are basic human rights, I think it is very important for teachers to weave lessons into any conversations they have in class be it about feminism or any other groups who have been mistreated. I think it is probably more difficult in some curriculums to weave this in, but we pride ourselves here to incorporate this into our curriculum and we are in favor of having everyone reach their full potential. It is unfortunate that we see this in history not happening because some people haven’t been given the same rights and opportunities.”

Feminism can also be seen in the curriculum here at Pine Crest because it is frequently used in the classroom to illustrate feminist literature and to show how feminist views can be applied. For example, there are many works of literature that illustrate feminism such as, Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Bronte, a book read by students at Pine Crest in the English curriculum. The Scarlet Letter, by Nathaniel Hawthorne, is another novel that has been used in class at Pine Crest to show how feminist views can be demonstrated through a literary work.  In an email interview, Ms. Jenkins, a Pine Crest English teacher, said, “For me, it is important to include feminist literature and feminist characters in an English class because literature serves as a reflection of the world about which and in which it is written. Fictional situations allow authors to explore possibilities that might not yet be feasible in their actual lives, but creating characters in a novel allows an audience to see a glimpse of a potential future.”  The Social Sciences at PC also take into account how feminism affects what students learn in the classroom. In Social Science, students learn about how feminist literature, often published during feminist movements, has affected people’s reaction and the broader social and cultural context.  

Teachers and students, including at PC, have applied feminist views and analyzed them to determine their effect on the topic of discussion. In an email interview, when asked about how she feels toward feminism and how women should assert themselves in society as a whole, Chloe Quail, a sophomore, said, “I feel that feminism is a validated belief in the sense that it encourages girls to assert themselves in society as a whole and wishes that females have their opinions truly heard and valued by others. In the classroom setting, I believe feminism has the ability, to a certain extent, to be an extremely useful tool for inclusion.  For example, if a teacher used the concept of feminism to add more girls into a class discussion, this action would be beneficial, as more opinions and greater diversity would be supplemented to the conversation.” Overall, feminism has a very influential role in the classroom and many other aspects of people’s lives.

Sources:

npr.org

goodread.com