CJ5: Females are Just as Successful and Competent as Males
My eco-identities over time have been constructed in a feminine way and I continue to challenge the way society looks upon females. The way I act, talk and approach certain stands is because of how I was brought up and inevitably, it has shaped who I am today. In M.J. Barrett’s (2005) article she challenges this idea and speaks up for females, as she takes a feminist stand point. “Discourses tell me what is possible, yet often produce versions of reality that appear incompatible” (p. 82), making it possible for me to become a teacher, seeing as I am female.
Looking around in my classes, in University, it is rare to see a male student as becoming a teacher is seen as a female profession. It is apparent that these discourses have influenced me and my profession which have resulted in me pursuing a middles year degree where I can teach all the content between grade 5 to 8. If I were pursuing a major in subjects like the sciences or mathematics, it would be seen that this career choice is more suitable for males as females do not have the ‘knowledge’ this teach that content. M.J. Barrett (2005) states, “discourse is embedded in notions of identity (what it means to be a girl, boy, student, teacher)… the meanings we attach to the words (signifiers) we use, and the rules we use to determine what “makes sense” or is possible” (p.82). This reinforces the idea of how it is normal for a female to become a teacher seeing as that is what “makes sense” in our society. It is rare when males become teachers and if they do, it is seen where they are majoring in something like a science or math where it is not “normal” for a female to teach those subjects. Therefore, it is true that I am shaped by society and the way females are viewed.
The ways M.J. Barrett challenges these discourses influences me to challenge them as well. I never truly realized how “female” I act and talk. Meaning, I did not realize how society has shaped me so much. As a student teacher, I know that I can teach any subject that I need to. I realize it is hard to get a job that is exactly the subject and grade I want, so I will teach what I can get. If it is mathematics, great. If it is science, great. I know what I am doing and just because I am female, does not mean I do not have the same knowledge and experience as a male. This idea of being a white female makes it easy for people to pin point me and say “I knew it” or "shocking" when I tell them I am pursuing an elementary education degree. All in all, M.J. Barrett and I challenge the idea of female roles and instead, we see females as successful and competent as males.
My visual representation is different this week. I am showing how I am teaching English and reading my class a story (a female thing to do, according to society) whereas, I have to have a male teacher come in to teach math to the class.
Barrett, M. J. (2005). Making some sense out of feminist poststructuralism in environmental education research and practice. Canadian Journal of Environmental Education, 10(1), 79-93
