Lesson Plan - Carrie

Topic -

Introduction to Feminist Criticism: Stereotypes of Gender using High School Musical 3's A Night to Remember (Youtube video)

Level - Secondary Two (Express)

Students' Profile - 36 students, average ability, mixed learning styles

Learning Environment - Classroom fitted with ICT equipment (visualizer, screen). Teacher should also have access to either a computer/ lap top with internet connectivity.

Lesson duration - 60 mins

Lesson Objectives - By the end of the lesson, students should be able to:
1. Understand that men and women are viewed differently in society.
2. Provide examples of how gender stereotypes are perpetuated in society.
3. Understand that a reader is influenced by his/her own gender in reading a text.






Rationale:
When I started teaching the literature component of the Language Arts program in Dunman High, I was really taken aback at how much my extremely bright students really did not know about how there can be different perspectives, and how different arguments can all have their merits. My students felt that there has to be a right, or wrong answer to EVERYTHING; so they transfered this belief into their schoolwork as well. In my lit lessons, they became disconcerted quite easily, because there were often no right or wrong answers to the open-ended questions that I asked in class. There were either just more justified answers, or less justified answers. This lesson was created with them in mind, them students with high ability but extremely limited exposure to different perspectives in society.

I had to work very hard to convince my students that every one was entitled to their own opinion, and I am certainly not going to give them an answer that they should memorize to regurgitate on their exam scripts or assignments. That said, I must add that this did not deter them from pestering me for "model answers" after EVERY SINGLE LESSON, which I ALWAYS refused. And I was lucky enough that there were no smart alecky students who gave weird answers to my open-ended questions. Dunman High students are extremely docile in class, which makes them good followers of instructions, but I hardly had any student challenge what I taught in class. That is why I feel, that students should understand that content knowledge is not the ONLY reason why education is in place.

In my opinion, one of the purposes of education is to create socially conscious "global citizens". Students should be exposed to different world views and perspectives in education, to understand that there is more to the world than what they have been exposed to. Education should teach people how to care, have empathy for other people, and inculcate a sense of responsibility for the future of the human race. On a more personal level, the purpose of education should enable students to become cultured individuals, who live with integrity and dignity regardless of their social backgrounds. And a way this could be achieved, is through a dialogic education, which subscribes to Freire's belief that education should act as a great leveler for all in society, and provide a space for community.

My lesson allows students to be exposed to the different opinions in the classroom. The initial class discussion and the small group discussion allows students to contribute to their collaborative learning in the classroom environment. For the students who are usually shy and quiet, the small group discussions would allow them a chance to voice their opinions in a less intimidating setting. Since my hypothetical students are of an average ability, I felt that the concept of stereotypes would be clearer to them if it was more obvious (like that shown in the video clip: Boys do not know or care how to dress; Girls are super enthusiastic about makeup and dresses). By asking the students to reflect on whether these gender assumptions apply to them, the students will start to realize that not everything they understand about gender, or people in general, are true. The poster activity at the end of the lesson also allows for creativity on the students' part in expressing their own take-away from the lesson. This was done so that students are allowed to express in ways that are meaningful to them, the content that they have learned. This would serve as a better way to reinforce their knowledge, instead of the usual pen-and-paper reflections.