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Students learn to stop sexism before it starts

There are many things education students learn before becoming teachers. How to go about creating a classroom environment where everyone feels included may not be at the top of the list; however, a master’s program at Sacramento State is helping to change that.

The University offers a graduate degree in education that specifically incorporates gender equity into the program. It is the only graduate program of its type in the California State University system. The program is open to all disciplines and does not require a teaching credential.

“Gender shouldn’t determine how a class is designed,” says Sherrie Carinci, professor and graduate coordinator for the Behavioral Sciences Gender Equity Studies Master's Program. “Educators should step back and look at their classroom through a gender lens to see if every student sees him or her self as part of the classroom. If not, they should look to see what they can do to be more inclusive in their teaching.”  

The problem, she says, is often not the teachers, but the way standard school curriculums are designed. She argues that they lean heavily towards the male learner.

“How many girls see female protagonists in the stories they are assigned to read? How many history assignments have as many famous women to study as men? It’s not just a K-12 issue. University faculty should be engaged in this issue as well. Female college students need to see themselves in the curriculum, too.”

The master’s degree program was established in 1982 as the Master of Arts in Education, Behavioral Science Women's Studies program. It was initially designed to promote gender equity for school-aged children. The name was changed in 2005 as the program shifted its emphasis from K-12 to a broader spectrum of education.

Since 2002, enrollment in the program has tripled, according to Carinci, and most of the growth has come from outside of the education discipline. Of the 40 students in the program, only half are teachers. “We have students from psychology, communication studies, sociology, child development, business and public policy. They see the importance of gender equity in their daily work. If they are going to be a public speaker or a trainer in a workplace, they want to be fair in their training.”

Carinci refers to her students as “agents of change and soldiers of the program,” and encourages them to “go out there and do as much as possible to show that students deserve a fair and equitable place to learn.”

For more information on the master's program, contact Carinci at 278-7010.