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An interview for the Erasmus project: Gender Issues- Tackle the problem (GIST)

Reporter: Good Morning! Guten Morgen! Bonjour!

                I heard you’ve made a survey for your year. What was it about?

Student 1: Yes we did, we wanted to ask the boys and girls from year 4 on their take on everyday things. We want to see, if there are variations between the boys’ answers and the girls’ answers. We asked them several questions, e.g.:

Do you help at home? What do you do? What do you want to become? What is your “dream – job”? What are your favourite subjects at school? Do you think some subjects should be taught separately for boys and girls? How do you study best at home? Which teaching methods do you prefer in class? Any suggestions for changes? Do you regularly do homework at home? What are your hobbies and interests? Do you play an instrument? Which? What/who are your role models? What are your favourite artists? How do you see the role of men and women at school and in society? Do you feel accepted and respected for who you are? Have you been bullied? With what grades are you happy? What programmes /shows do you watch?  How much sport do you do per week? How much money do you spend on cosmetics/clothes? Do you watch news or read newspapers?

Then, we have evaluated the surveys and now let’s listen to what “a typical girl” has to say, if you could talk about “a typical girl. Of course, not every girl answered the same things, but this is, what most girls agreed on.

Typical girl: Hi I am…. In my free time I like to draw, to dance and to play instruments. I really enjoy sports, too. In our school, our sports class is big compared to the boys’ class. This is not surprising since the boys group was so big, they had to be split into 2. No, the boys do not outnumber us that much, but the group can only be split when there are 30 students and the boys are just over that number, while the girls are just under. That’s unfair, but I think it’s good that we are separated from the boys in sports. My favourite lessons are the ones where I’m practicing languages. I work hard to get good grades.

I study best for tests when I read, write down notes and use flashcards. I like group work and discussions in class. I do my homework regularly and I study around 4-6 hours a week. I think teachers prefer girls, but it’s normal because boys are annoying, aren’t they? Some girls don’t feel comfortable in class and they even complain about being bullied.

When I grow up I want to have a creative job.

I like lots of musicians and actors and I like watching series in my free time. Clothes are important for me and I spend around 30-150€ per month on clothes and cosmetics.

I find that opportunities for women and men in our society should be the same, but unfortunately they are not.

Student 1: And what do you think?

Typical boy: My favourite subject is definitely sports. It’s a shame that we only have two hours of sports a week. I’d like to have sports every day. In my free time I enjoy doing sports and playing video games. I don’t play any instrument, but I like watching the news and being informed about what is happening in the everyday world.

I learn best for tests when I work on my computer with music, but I also like discussions in class. I work best alone, but when we do a competition in class, I’m really motivated. I do my homework, but I only do what I need to do. I’m happy with a 7 or 8 out of 10.

I feel good in class, sometimes the teachers are a bit impatient with us, but as long as we have fun, it’s fine.

Reporter: Do you know what you want to do now? What needs to change? Which topics do you want to look into in more details?

Student 2: We want to make suggestions on how we can unite the school community. We already have a few ideas; we could do more field trips and create days that are dedicated to the class. We could also have competitions and school tournaments. We should discuss and be more informed about current political topics. We’d also like to make suggestions for after school activities in which we’d be interested in. It’s also important for us to have an active student representation which represent the student’s interests and helps organize events.

We want to know more about the differences between boys and girls and the way they study. It would be better, if we had more sports in school and we want to find a way to make boys more motivated and ambitious in school. We also want to improve girl/boy collaboration. We can always learn more from each other.

Reporter: Good luck! Thank you for the interview!