Download NCRB Research Seminar/ Network Gendered Violence in Schools

NCRB Research Seminar/ Network Gendered Violence in Schools and Teacher Education in the Barents
Region, Oulu November 2001
Jenny Kangasvuo
University of Oulu
Address: Virkakatu 5 C 2
90570 Oulu, Finland
Tel: +358-8-554 22 47
E-mail: [email protected]
ABSTRACT
Increasing Awareness in Educational Organisations of Sexualised and Gendered Violence -publication and web
project 2001-2002
The aim of the project is 1) to increase public and scientific awareness of sexualised and
gendered violence in educational organisations, 2) to develop communication between
existing research networks and 3) to produce a publication, which is suitable educational
material for pedagogical studies. The context of the publication is the change in sexual
culture. The main points are gendered and sexualised violence in different educational
organisations, sexual violence towards children, children and young adults as victims of
prostitution, violence in religious and traditional communities and homophobia and
heterosexism as forms of violence. Articles will be published on a web site and as a book.
The aim of the project is to raise awareness of sexualised and gendered violence in educational organisations,
and to look for ways to prevent violence. In Europe there is not a great deal of teaching material on gendered and
sexualised violence based on scientific research and suitable for higher education. The project will produce such
material. This teaching material will raise educational organisations’ personnels’ the public and scientific
awareness of gendered and sexualised violence. The aim of the project is to change attitudes and prevent
violence in the entire society. A website and a discussion group will be created during the project. These will
give children and young adults that are suffering from gendered and sexualised violence, a possibility to become
a part of the research project and to speak up. The website will also be used for collecting research data.
Furthermore the project will bring forward research that has already been conducted, and employ young female
researchers.
NCRB Research Seminar/ Network Gendered Violence in Schools and Teacher
Education in the Barents Region, Oulu November 2001
Alexandra Anissimova
Crisis Center
13 a Zinovjeva Str., Apatity, 184200 Russia
Tel: +7-815-5540970; Fax: +7-815-5576358
E-mail: [email protected]
ABSTRACT
Description of cases of sexual violence toward children and difficulties appeared in
process of work with children
Sexual violence toward children had been the subject of attention for many years only for a
narrow circle of experts but closed for the general public.
Statistics about the frequency of sexual violence cases toward children don’t give a complete
description of this crime in Russia. Unfortunately, this phenomenon is much more spread,
than its considered being.
In 2001 I worked with 5 children, who had been the subjects of sexual violence both in and
out of the family. They all are from problematic families and were sent to shelter for children.
Another case happened in September, when a 7-year-old boy, who’d been abused by his
brother, appealed to our centre.
I had some difficulties, of course, while working with such children. It was painful for me to
speak with children about sexual violence, because I constantly tried to cope with my
confusion while describing genitals or act of violence.
I think, that I should realize first of all by myself my ideas of violence and get over my
confusion.
It was easier for me to work with teenagers, who were able to talk by themselves about their
troubles, because their understanding of the violence situation and their knowledge in sex is
higher.
It was more difficult to work with children of 7-9 years old. I didn’t know, what terms to use
in that case, what they knew about sex.
To prevent sexual violence toward children it is necessary to convey seminars for teachers,
medicals and parents, which may let them know how to diagnose an abused child and help
him. We shall probably compile a booklet revealing this problem.
NCRB Research Seminar/Network Gendered Violence in Schools and Teacher
Education in the Barents Region, Oulu November 2001
Mervi Heikkinen
Faculty of Education
P.O.Box 2000, 90014 University of Oulu, Finland
Tel: +358-8-5533604; Fax: +358-8-5533600
E-mail:[email protected]
ABSTRACT
Sexual harassment as an organizational phenomena in educational organisations
My research interest lay on the ground of organizational approach that I am applying to
university. University as other traditional large organizations army and monastery, have been
excluding women. In Finland women got their right to sign in to University 100 years ago 1901. In these organizations mentioned above sexuality have been banished and there is a
silence of sexuality. Sexuality and emotions has been seen disrupting the ideal functioning of
organization. According the research made gender and sexuality are structural elements in
organization that are leading personnel's behavior. Sexual harassment is a part of
organizational function that produces gender and sexuality. In Finland sexual harassment has
been researched especially on 90's in Universities of Helsinki, Kuopio and Oulu.
Feminist organizational research has been made since the beginning of 20th century. 1970's
research was done in factories and jobs within organizations. University is by its
organizational structure near of the function of the large work organization. Studying,
teaching and researching are the main occupation for most of the people that work daily at the
university. My goal is to research by applying organizational concepts to university and to
point out some structural agents that creates hostile climate and subordination especially for
women. In feminist organization theory topics to discussed are organizations' dual structure of
bureaucracy and patriarchy, and the political fiction of universal "individual" or "citizen" that
is constructed from a male body.
Organizations are central shaping contemporary society. Experiences in work or educational
organizations forms their understandings of themselves as societal beings. Sexual harassment
is organizational phenomena and by organizational arrangements and decisions. The results of
the research may use in planning and development of educational organizations.
NCRB Research Seminar/Network Gendered Violence in Schools and Teacher
Education in the Barents Region, Oulu November 2001
Tuija Huuki
The Department of Educational Sciences and Teacher Education
P.O.Box 2000, 90014 University of Oulu, Finland
Tel: +358-8-5533814; Fax: +358-8-5533744
E-mail: [email protected]
ABSTRACT
The representations of masculinity and femininity of school pupils
I am a postgraduate student in Vappu Sunnari’s research project “Gendered violence in
schools and teacher education”. The project concentrates on school violence from the
perspective of power and the representations of femininity and masculinity. In the workshop, I
would like to have a presentation on the representations of femininity and masculinity of
school pupils.
During recent years, Connel’s thoughts of hegemonic masculinity and emphasized femininity
have been widely discussed. According to Connel (1995, 77), the pattern of hegemonic
masculinity is having the leading role, while women – as well as some forms of masculinities,
homosexuals for instance – embody the subordinate position in Western gender order.
Duncan counters this view of lack of feminine hegemony. Duncan thinks that despite the
global subordination of women by men, there can still exist a hierarchy of femininities which
exerts dominance over some masculinities some of the time, as well as oppressing other forms
of femininities. According to him, the concept of hegemony is useful but not entirely
satisfactory in all areas of life. (Duncan 1999, 137.)
At the moment I am starting the empirical part of my study, and would like to discuss these
themes on the basis of a small-scale data of 20 drawings and short narratives from field visits
with sixth-grade students. In my presentation, the aim is to consider following issues through
the pupils’ work: What are the representations of masculinity and femininity that can be found
in the pictures? Can there be seen any sex-role stereotypes in the drawings? Can this kind of
data be used as a way of collecting information on the subject? Is it possible to draw any
conclusions on the representations of masculinity and femininity on the basis of these
drawings?
NCRB Research Seminar/Network Gendered Violence in Schools and Teacher
Education in the Barents Region, Oulu November 2001
Sari Manninen
The department of Educational Sciences and Teacher Education
University of Oulu, Finland
Iidesranta 32 A27
33100 Tampere
Tel. 03-2533486/ 040-5527169
E-mail: [email protected]
ABSTRACT
The representations of masculinity and violent behaviour of immigrant boys
The aim of my study is to examine the concepts of masculinity, power and gendered violence
in the context of a school environment. The research will be part of the project “Gendered
power relations and violence in schools and teacher education” led by Dr. Vappu Sunnari.
One aspect of my study is the representations of masculinity among immigrant and finnish
boys and the question how these representations are connected to gendered violence at school.
According to R.W. Connell men from ethnical minorities are subordinated to hegemonic
masculinities (Connell 1995, 143). The sex-role stereotypes that are often associated with
masculinity are dominance, competitiveness, aggressiveness, heterosexuality, physical force,
courage and the control of certain feelings (Nicolson 1996, 13; Jokinen 2000, 217).
In the workshop my presentation would focus on representations of masculinities among
immigrant children and how these representations relate to violent behaviour. Moreover, I
would analyse the existence of the sex-role stereotypes in the representations of masculinities
among immigrant boys in comparison with finnish boys.
The research questions are the following:
1. What is school violence among 7-8 years old boys?
2. What part of it is gendered violence and how it represents itself?
3. What are the representations of masculinities among Finnish and immigrant
adolescent boys?
4. How are the representations of masculinity and power bound up with the gendered
violence?
5. Which cultural determinants establish to be significant in the matter of early stages of
violent situations and the representations of masculinity?
NCRB Research Seminar/Network Gendered Violence in Schools and Teacher
Education in the Barents Region, Oulu November 2001
Natalia Potapova
Pomor State University
Department of Social Work
Arkhangelsk, Russia
Tel: +7-818-2654262; Fax: +7-818-2654000
E-mail: [email protected]
ABSTRACT
Teachers’ attitude to the problem of sex education of school children
Sex education at school is necessary and there is no need to deny this. Pedagogical collectives are faced with
several problems connected with sex education:
Working out a program of sex education. It is important to define priority directions and determine the
topics that shouldn’t be touched upon in a school course.
Attaching the course to the teachers of certain specialization or dividing the course into several topic areas
and attaching these topic areas to the teachers of different subjects.
Informational, methodological and psychological readiness of teachers to conduct the course.
In considering these problems a poll was taken among the teachers, who were being retrained to social teachers.
The teachers of a classical gymnasium were taken as a check group.
The group of social teachers attended lectures devoted to the following topics:
*
sexual identification of adolescence and its breach;
*
conduction of the course «Sex education» at school;
*
sexual violence among adolescence.
The questioning was made after these special lectures.
The research showed that informational preparedness of the teachers had increased in comparison with the check
group. The teachers of the experimental group met difficulties 3 times less frequent while answering a
questionnaire than those of the check group. At the same time the teachers of the experimental group expressed
more definitely their attitude to the topics that, to their mind, are not important in the school course of sex
education.
Significant differences were noticed in the answers to the questions dealing with the following topics:
*
attitude to sexuality without prejudice;
*
establishment of harmonious sexual relationships;
*
tolerance to different forms of sexuality;
*
increasing the level of information and understanding in the questions of sexuality;
*
ability to discuss openly the questions of sexuality.
It is necessary to mention here that these topics were emphasized during the teacher training.
Yet, there is no significant difference in psychological readiness of the teachers to conduct the course of sex
education between the experimental and the check groups. Practically all the teachers insist that family should
take on the main part of child’s sex education. A half of all the teachers questioned declared that it was difficult
for them to speak with pupils on the topics of sex.
Thus resulting from these facts we can make a conclusion:
Schoolteachers realize the necessity of sex education course at school.
There is a real opportunity to increase the level of information of teachers on the questions connected with
sexuality through teacher training courses.
An increase in the level of information doesn’t lead to the improvement of psychological readiness of
teachers to speak on the topics of sexuality with children and adolescence. In order to overcome this problem
special trainings should be held to get rid of psychological barriers.
NCRB Research Seminar/Network Gendered Violence in Schools and Teacher
Education in the Barents Region, Oulu November 2001
Marina Repina,
Departmen tof Educational Sciences and Teacher Education, University of Oulu
Address: Kylmäläntie 1, 91800 Tyrnävä, Finland
Tel: +358-040-8486345
E-mail: [email protected]
ABSTRACT
Gender identity forming and violence of male adolescents with behavioural difficulties
Within the research there is a distinctive attribute such as representation of masculinity and
femininity as a semantic construct among adolescents.
Discussion around gender conception partly placed on the acquisition of gender conception
and competencies. There are issues, which establish, knowing a stereotype does not necessary
mean that one strives to behave in accordance with it (Bandura, 1986).
People do not passively absorb gender role conceptions from whatever influences happen to
impinge on them. Rather, they conduct generic conceptions from the diversity of styles of
conduct that are modelled, evaluatively prescribed and taught by different individuals or by
even the same person for different activities in different contexts.
People do not get environmental influences only consciously. The semantic significance and
meaning of “man”, “woman”, “opposite sex”, constructed by adolescents with behavioural
difficulties, are in aim to search by projective method “Semantic differential”.
NCRB Research Seminar/Network Gendered Violence in Schools and Teacher
Education in the Barents Region, Oulu November 2001
Anu Tallavaara
Department of Educational Sciences and Teacher Education
P.O.BOX 2000, 90014 University of Oulu, Finland
Tel: +358-8-5533814; Fax: +358-8-5533744
E-mail: [email protected]
ABSTRACT
Power and school violence – practical perspectives
I am a postgraduate student working currently in the project of Gendered Violence. The
project concentrates on school violence from the standpoint of power and the representation
of femininity and masculinity. My master thesis handled power and the formation of power
relations among student teacher in their first practising period. In my present study, I continue
working with power issues along with school violence and the representations.
In the workshop I would like to make a presentation on power. I would map out some theories
on power and link them with school violence. I would like to awake discussions on the topic.
Steven Lukes has an engrossing aspect into power discussions. He divides power in three
dimensions from observable conflicts to latent conflicts, from conflicting issues to potentially
conflicting issues. His thinking can evoke some ideas in feminist school violence work.
Furthermore, Emma Zapata and her co-writers in “Women and Power: Fighting Patriarchies
& Powerty”, as well as Norwegian Kristen Reisby, see different ways of using power. The
traditional – patriarchal - way of understanding power is power over other people, now
women bring new ways to view power - as power within, power to and power with.
Furthermore, I intend to bring up Foucault’s interesting concept of biopower.
Above mentioned views on power I would like to bring in to the concrete level of every day
school work. Doing this I will use my own experiences as a schoolteacher as well as data
from our pilot study of school violence.
NCRB Research Seminar/Network Gendered Violence in Schools and Teacher
Education in the Barents Region, Oulu November 2001
Olga Tillman
Crisis Centre – Bridges Mercy
Vyucheiskogo st. 31-18, Arkhangelsk, 163060 Russia
Tel: +7-8182-2654262; Fax: +7-8182-2654262
ABSTRACT
Sexual harassment at school
Purpose: To study if sexual harassment exists at school and in what way it is present there. Object of research:
pupils of 3 – 9 grades in one of Arkhangelsk secondary schools 196 persons took part in the survey, which was
conducted in grades from 3 to 9. According to the sex criterion they were 96 boys and 100 girls. The pupils were
asked one question: «What don’t you like in the behavior of the opposite sex». Boys were to answer what they
didn’t like in girls’ behavior towards themselves and the girls – vice versa.
The analysis of the survey’s results has revealed a problem in relations of sexes. Both boys and girls told that
they experience some violent actions of physical, verbal and psychological character. Beginning their social
relations between the sexes at school children acquire habits of communication with each other and then get
stereotypes of sexual behavior. At present school doesn’t provide sexual education, which is limited only by
such a circle of questions as biological mechanism of reproduction, infection diseases, contraception and other
appropriate facts of «social hygiene». It has nothing to do with a complicated problem of development of sexual
culture in relations. Children don’t acquire skills of adequate interrelations of sexual character. According to the
survey pupils don’t even realize that many of their actions are of sexual context.
In their answers to the question what they didn’t like in the behavior of the opposite sex pupils told that most
often they experienced unwanted actions of physical character. These actions were expressed in different forms
by both sexes, such as: pushing, kicking, hitting, pulling the hair, spitting into faces, taking ones’ things without
permission, throwing them down from tables. 79% of girls and 117% of boys behaved in such a way towards the
opposite sex.
Unpleasant verbal actions are at the second place in children’s responses. The most spread are swear words, then
crying, teasing, calling by surname or all sorts of names. 99% of girls suffer from boys’ verbal violence – they
are the most suppressed and 65% of boys experience girls’ verbal violence.
Besides physical and verbal actions there are unpleasant actions violating pupils’ personality when they
experience criticism, discussion of their appearance, lies, cheating, mockery, pestering, bothering on behalf of
the opposite sex. 50% of boys and 53% of girls mentioned this kind of violence.
It’s necessary to emphasize that from 5 to 8 grades girls experience increased use of swear words of sexual
character towards them. At present a swear word is the most typical sign of sexual complex in the modern
society. Pupils’ threshold of sensitivity to social and cultural norms of interrelations between the sexes decreases
when they get used to swear words in their vocabulary.
Beginning from the 6 grades both girls and boys mention the features of sex-role identification in each other.
Boys pay attention that girls begin to «show off», «be fretful», and girls – that boys dare to touch them, raise
their skirts, don’t let them go impolitely. This testifies that children’s cultural skills of behavior are not
developed according to male and female models. There is no cultivation of moral responsibility for one’s
behavior and for consequences of made solutions in relations with persons of the opposite sex in the growing
generation. Beginning from the 5 grade there appears at first a small percentage (1 – 2 persons) of boys who like
any actions on behalf of girls. They don’t consider unpleasant anything in relation to them. Till the 9 grade this
quota grows up to 50% of boys.
Thus, pupils don’t know the essence of male and female features of personality and the corresponding socially
appropriate sex-role behavior. And this makes the process of their socialization more difficult, causes
development of violent treatment, and leads to the problem of sexual discrimination in the society.
NCRB Research Seminar/Network Gendered Violence in Schools and Teacher Education in
the Barents Region, Oulu November 2001
Maria Styleva
Centre Prijut
Tel: +7-814-2750961; Fax: +7-815-233121
E-mail: [email protected]
ABSTRACT
The conflict of the real wishes and social stereotypes in ideas of a man and a woman, or
forming androginism of schoolchildren of teen age (results of the research)
This year we have had a research in order to find out social stereotypes of school teenagers. The subject of the
research is compositions. Schoolchildren were offered to write a composition on the following theme: for girls –
“ If I were a boy...” and for boys – “If I were a girl...” and a little bit later they were offered to write a
composition on the theme: ”My idea of girls...” and “My idea of boys...». The object of the research is a pupil of
the 5th form (30 persons), 11-12 years of age, school of Murmansk.
The results of our research show, that gender ideas of young teenagers are stereotyped, i.e. it reflects traditional
imagination, which exists in society. Boys’ and girls’ ideas of each other sex are based on the existed ideas,
expectations and standards which the society brings forward men and women, i.e. based on the stereotypes of the
patriarchal society. In the boys’ compositions there is a psychological stereotype of masculine: boys are stronger
then girls and that’s why man is the head of the family. The girls are different (20%), good, the best creatures on
the Earth, because they become mothers, and mama is the most sacred person. Woman’s organism is weaker,
then that of man, sometimes girls annoy.
Boys consider themselves strong and the other sex – weak. Boys are stronger, because girls’ organism is weaker,
that’s why man is the head of the family. Girls consider boys to be different (30%), they like kind and clever
boys. They interpret them as future defenders and accept them as stronger sex. Girls give uncertain appraise to
their and the other sex. They do it using narration of that perspective, which is defined and encouraged by
society for boys through the accessible kinds of activity, professions of boys etc. There is also a discontent of
that perspective, which defined secretly for girls by society. However, girls already definitely define how the
society conceives them and what it waits of a woman, defining her status and role – “We women are future
wives and mothers”. “Women’s” kinds of activity, which boys enumerate are: go shopping, laundry (14,2%),
doing about the house (14,2%), ironing (14,2%), knitting, sewing (14,2%), cooking (14,2%), keeping on diet,
organizing holidays. Each of this kind of activity – forms 50% that is represented in boys’ compositions. It
shows how gender roles are divided in families. Mothers run the house, and fathers earn money.
In girls’ compositions such “men’s” kinds of activity are represented: fighting, doing well, defending girls
(20%), playing with toy-cars, planes, tanks (27%), attending computer clubs, going in for sport (50%), serving in
the army, nailing, sawing (14%), sharpening, drilling (14%), sailing and be sailors.
It should be noticed that sport is considered to be men’s sphere of activity especially hockey, volleyball, karate,
bocks and others (89%). For girls sport is the form to solve contradictions in relations with boys and other
conflict situations. Girls in their compositions name such kinds of activity that could be done by boys, but are
done by girls: help in the running the house, peeling the potatoes, go shopping, take care of smbd.
The traits of character, which girls should posses in boys’ minds are: kindness 80%, wit 40%, industriousness,
responsibility, modesty, honesty, justice, patience. But we would like to notice that during young school teenage
gender ideas, roles, and models of behavior are forming. But a child may combine in himself traditionally men’s
and women’s traites of character. So, teenagers have inclination for androginism. It allows for pedagogues,
psychologists and parents to change the content and methods of teaching upbringing and forming gender ideas of
children.
NCRB Research Seminar/Network Gendered Violence in Schools and Teacher
Education in the Barents Region, Oulu November 2001
Irina Grunicheva
Social and Up-bringing Problems Department, University Lyceum,
Petrozavodsk State University
E-mail: [email protected]
ABSTRACT
In-service teachers' approaches to gendered violence and building in school
in the context general adolescents up-bringing
I would like to divide my presentation into 6 parts:
1. Additional educational programm "School as an open place for tolerance and dialogue"
practical implementation. Creation of furter collaborative projects.
2. A year-round school project "Say "No" to violence and bulling" in the framework of the
UNESCO multilingual projects.
3. Action research methodologies. "Q-sort technigue" as a research instrument and a tool in
gendered violence conflict management.
4. Sexism and violence in school and adolescents' reproductive health and sexual up-bringing
in Karelia. Facts and anaysis.
5. Gendered violence in Adolescence. Mass media influence (nterviews research).
6. Perspectives of in-service and preservice joint teacher-training, which main aim is to
prepare teachers to be aware of the issues of gendering, sexism and sexual violence and
harassment in school environment and the ways they are bound in every day school life
(together with Olga Ilgunova).
NCRB Research Seminar/Network Gendered Violence in Schools and Teacher
Education in the Barents Region, Oulu November 2001
Olga Ilgunova
Karelian State Pedagogical University, Department of Psycology
E-mail: [email protected]
ABSTRACT
Sexism and gendered violence research in school and family environment
The research has been carried out in the following main directions:
1. Gender aspect: personal and behaviour pecularities of children exposed to family violence.
Differences in masculinity and feminity symptoms.
2. Parent-child relationship. Gender dependent existence. Mother/father to son/daughter
violence scheme.
3. School teachers. Gender-based preferences in student-teacher relationship.
4. Active research methodologies: tests, observations, experiments, questionnaries, situations
modeling, fairy-tale therapy, dynamic therapy.
NCRB Research Seminar/Network Gendered Violence in Schools and Teacher
Education in the Barents Region, Oulu November 2001
Vappu Sunnari
Department of Educational Sciences and Teacher Education
P.O.Box 2000, 90014 University of Oulu, Finland
Tel: +358-8-5533720; Fax: +358-8-5533744
E-mail: [email protected]
ABSTRACT
Heterosexism and sexual harassment as hidden forms of monoacculturating educational
environments and constructing and maintaining heteronormative hierarchies in those
contexts
Sexual harassment is a topic of an increasing international interest during last two decades ­
and of an increasing interest in Finland, too, during the last decade. A special reason for that
in Finland was that a cause of sexual harassment was added into the Finnish Equality Act in
1995.
According to the clause an employer must - to the best of his/her abilities - make sure that no
employee shall be subject of sexual harassment in the workplace. The term sexual harassment
was introduced first in working life context, and it was seen to be characterised by unwanted
conduct of a sexual nature, or other conduct based on sex/gender affecting the dignity and
security of the harassed person(s) and groups, and the atmosphere of the working
environments. Heterosexism is a term introduced to characterise in more details the nature
and the ideology of the culture producing the phenomenon.
My aim in my presentation is to discuss the concepts of hetero-sexism and sexual harassment
the forms -and especially the hidden forms - of heterosexism and sexual harassment that
monoacculturate educational environments and construct and maintain heteronormative
hierarchies in those contexts.