Unequal expectations | Kiley Witfoth | TEDxPascoCountySchools
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0:05 - 0:09Okay, from birth all the way to adulthood,
boys are told to like trucks and sports. -
0:09 - 0:10They're told not to cry
-
0:10 - 0:13and that they should like math
and science, not theater and art. -
0:13 - 0:16Girls are told to be
frilly little pink princesses. -
0:16 - 0:18They're told to play with dolls.
-
0:18 - 0:19Women are taught how to cook and clean,
-
0:19 - 0:23while their counterparts are told to just
find someone who knows how to do that. -
0:23 - 0:27Some people would argue that they treat
their sons and daughters equally, -
0:27 - 0:29but parents don't without even knowing it.
-
0:29 - 0:32In a study conducted
by neuroscientist Lise Elliot, -
0:32 - 0:35mothers were asked to put their babies
on a downward slope. -
0:35 - 0:38They then estimated how steep of a slope
their 11-month-olds could crawl down. -
0:38 - 0:41Mothers with boys got it right
to within one degree -
0:41 - 0:43while mothers with daughters
underestimated their ability -
0:43 - 0:44by about nine degrees
-
0:44 - 0:46despite lack of differences
in motor skills -
0:46 - 0:48between young boys and girls.
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0:48 - 0:50We underestimate our children
without even knowing it. -
0:50 - 0:51But is it really our fault
-
0:51 - 0:54when we, as a society,
have been doing that for centuries? -
0:54 - 0:56Remember Margaret Hamilton,
-
0:56 - 0:59the woman who helped build
the Apollo 11 on-flight software? -
0:59 - 1:03What about Rebecca Latimer Felton,
the first woman senator in the US? -
1:03 - 1:07Caroline Herschel, the German astronomer
who founded many comets? -
1:08 - 1:11Society's been telling us what roles
we play in the world for centuries, -
1:11 - 1:14from men needing to be strong
to women needing to be delicate, -
1:14 - 1:17our thoughts about what men and women
are perceived as is atrocious. -
1:17 - 1:20According to landofthebrave.info,
the tasks of colonial women, -
1:20 - 1:22which was from 1607 to 1763,
-
1:22 - 1:25were to cook, clean,
and tend to the children and animals. -
1:25 - 1:29The tasks of colonial men,
as stated in public.gettysburg.edu, -
1:29 - 1:32were to have social power,
be educated and own property. -
1:32 - 1:36They also stated that men usually
didn't step outside of the gender roles -
1:36 - 1:38because they already had
all the freedom that they needed. -
1:38 - 1:41Women, however,
lacked the same type of freedom -
1:41 - 1:43and often got in trouble
for stepping outside of the limits. -
1:43 - 1:47We still treat people the same way
that we did roughly 409 years ago. -
1:47 - 1:50That's like America still
prosecuting people for witchcraft. -
1:51 - 1:53In an image search
of the phrase "boys' toys," -
1:53 - 1:55everything that showed up
had to do with a gun, -
1:55 - 1:59a car of some sort, some tools,
superheroes or dinosaurs. -
1:59 - 2:01In another image search
of the phrase "girls' toys," -
2:01 - 2:04everything that showed up was pink,
had to do with a castle or a princess, -
2:04 - 2:06even a play kitchen and cosmetics set.
-
2:06 - 2:09Another reason we treat our sons
differently than our daughters -
2:09 - 2:11is because of the way
we are marketed things. -
2:11 - 2:13In an article written by Laurie Futterman,
-
2:13 - 2:17studies show from six to 12 months old,
both sexes prefer dolls to trucks. -
2:17 - 2:18Many people might argue
-
2:18 - 2:20that playing with a doll,
a traditionally female toy, -
2:20 - 2:23might confuse the child
about their gender or sexuality, -
2:23 - 2:25but that could not be more wrong.
-
2:25 - 2:30Playing with a doll could help the child
with nurturing and relationship building, -
2:30 - 2:34according to Rebecca Haynes in her article
"Why Boys Should Play With Dolls." -
2:34 - 2:35Why would we deprive young children
-
2:35 - 2:38from the ability to love
and care for something? -
2:38 - 2:40Taking all of this into account,
-
2:40 - 2:43people do in fact treat their sons
different than their daughters. -
2:43 - 2:45Maybe it's because
people don't like change, -
2:45 - 2:48or because we're advertised
to gender norms all the time. -
2:48 - 2:49So let the little boys play with dolls.
-
2:49 - 2:51Let the little girls play with trucks.
-
2:51 - 2:52Let the boys wear pink.
-
2:52 - 2:55And I don't mean the shirts that say,
"Tough guys wear pink." -
2:55 - 2:57Let them be delicate or let them be rough.
-
2:57 - 3:00Teach the boys how to cook
and teach the girls how to fix a flat. -
3:00 - 3:03Don't make your kids
rely on others for simple things. -
3:03 - 3:05Let them be who and what they want to be.
-
3:05 - 3:06To quote Margaret Fuller,
-
3:06 - 3:09"There's no wholly masculine man,
no purely feminine woman."
- Title:
- Unequal expectations | Kiley Witfoth | TEDxPascoCountySchools
- Description:
-
Kiley Witfoth talks about unequal expectations between boys and girls from childhood.
Kiley is a 10th grader from Hudson High School.
This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx
- Video Language:
- English
- Team:
- closed TED
- Project:
- TEDxTalks
- Duration:
- 03:10
Rhonda Jacobs edited English subtitles for Unequal expectations | Kiley Witfoth | TEDxPascoCountySchools | ||
Rhonda Jacobs approved English subtitles for Unequal expectations | Kiley Witfoth | TEDxPascoCountySchools | ||
Rhonda Jacobs edited English subtitles for Unequal expectations | Kiley Witfoth | TEDxPascoCountySchools | ||
Hiroko Kawano accepted English subtitles for Unequal expectations | Kiley Witfoth | TEDxPascoCountySchools | ||
Hiroko Kawano edited English subtitles for Unequal expectations | Kiley Witfoth | TEDxPascoCountySchools | ||
Hiroko Kawano edited English subtitles for Unequal expectations | Kiley Witfoth | TEDxPascoCountySchools | ||
Hiroko Kawano edited English subtitles for Unequal expectations | Kiley Witfoth | TEDxPascoCountySchools | ||
Rhonda Jacobs rejected English subtitles for Unequal expectations | Kiley Witfoth | TEDxPascoCountySchools |