March is National Women’s History Month. It’s a time to look back on the accomplishments of important female figures like Susan B. Anthony, Harriet Tubman, and Marie Curie. As is normally the case during heritage months, most of the efforts in schools are directed at the actual people reflected within the month, in this case, girls. The whole reason we need a month like this in the first place is that young girls are typically not taught enough about the courageous women that came before them. However, it is important that we remember that boys need to learn this information too.
This month was in part created to help girls combat the stereotypical images of women they received from their male-dominated history curriculum, but it may be even more important to combat those images in the heads of males. So many of the problems we have with the way men treat women can be chalked up to quite literally millenniums of viewing women as less-than. The adverse effects of exclusively teaching that history in class cannot be overstated.
It’s important not to shy away from history even if it isn’t pretty and the truth is women have been subjugated for most of human history. But in spite of being arbitrarily held back for centuries, women have always managed to become much more than the 2nd class citizens patriarchal societies intended them to be. However, history is largely written by men; so if you are not intentional about teaching the accomplishments of women, then you likely won’t.
Just as it’s important for white students to learn black history during Black History Month, it’s important for men to learn a thing or two about women during Women’s History Month. If we truly want society to advance in gender equality, then it’s not enough for women to see themselves as equal and valuable… men have to see it too. The easiest way to get a man to see something is to show it to him as a boy.