November 2nd.

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APA Task Force on the  Sexualization of Girls:

This topic on the sexualization of girls motivates me be more aware of what soceity is doing. Young women are being trained  at such a young age by family, friends, and media about what they should and should not wear. The pressure that is put on young girls to be these sexual objects is so disturbing. We have come a long way to having women become more powerful in society; however, we fail to encourage success in something other than their appearance…

“More general societal effects may include an increase in sexism; fewer girls pursuing careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM); increased rates of sexual harassment and sexual violence; and an increased demand for child pornography (pg 1).”This is upsetting and I cannot imagine what goes through  these young girls’ minds when letting the presence of sexism determine their career. I am most motivated by this because I strongly believe women need to be in these type of careers.  Women need to feel motivated by knowing their desired career in mostly pursued by men. Women are discouraged becuase of what they learn at such a young age. For example, the swimsuit and sweater test conducted in this article proves how insecure women feel about their appearance. The participants who tested worse were those young girls in swimsuits? Why? The ones who were comfortable wearing a sweater did better becasue they didn’t have the pressure of exposing their skin. Should we blame media for this?

Video:

Karen Sternheimer mentions in this video how society finds it convenient to blame media for sex and drugs. I agree with Sternheimer because many people believe in the protectionist approch  eventhough reality is that sex and drugs are everywhere not only in media.

Relating this video to the article on sexualizing women, Rap music sexualizes women extremely well. However, popular culture accepts this. I myself dont mind some Rap music. If you really listen to some of the lyrics you will hear how women are described as sex objects. Music and how popular culture accepts music may lead to the continuous use of sexism in society today.

November 2nd

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There are several sections of these readings that really made me think about not only the issues of sexuality and young women but how easy it is for girls to give into that idea. The steps that people, parents, and women can take to help in getting rid of this idea of women as sex objects is also crucial. There was a quote from the article that said “if girls purchase or ask their parents to purchase products and clothes to make them look physically appealing and sexy then they are in fact sexualizing themselves.” This really got me thinking is it bad to want to look cute and like your outfit? I guess it depends why someone is dressing cute and whether or not it affects their productiveness in day to day activities and focus in school.

A point of the article that really surprised me was the swimsuit/sweater test. It appalled me to see that women would perform differently just because of what they were wearing.  For me whenever I have an exam or its finals week I just dress as comfortable as possible, but I would imagine if I cared more about my outfit at those times I wouldn’t perform as well. The article said that an “association between self-objectiveness and anxiety about appearances and feeling of shame.” It is honestly so sad that someone could be so intelligent and yet be brought down on how they feel, what they are wearing and this idea of sexualizing women.

When the articles got to the sections of what can be done I thought they were rather vague in actions that can be done to tackle this issue. Maybe that is just me but people need more scenarios and step by step solutions that are easy to follow everyday that don’t frustrate someone but help them criticize their own thought processes. It said that parents should do things such as talk, question, understand, encourage, and educate. I thought the most important one was to question. If young women ask themselves why they are choosing to wear what they wear than it can help the individual see what is important and what’s not. Also if they are told to see how much they are fixing their outfits instead of studying and taking notes in class I think it would come as a shock. Whenever I go into the girls bathroom there is ALWAYS someone fixing there outfit, putting on makeup, or doing their hair. Girls really do need to be themselves and dress more for success not for others. We are always so worried about others but what about ourselves?? Looking at the different areas for empowering girls I definitely looked at the Girl Scouts for America link. Being a girl scout for many years taught me many life lessons and I don’t regret being involved in that program for any second. Learning is priceless, but learning how to be yourself and help others is even more so.

Welcome to My Leadership Journey

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After more than 20 years of teaching, I have decided to get a Master’s degree in Educational Leadership.  I am excited to begin this journey at California State University-Channel Islands.

CI