Sweden has a longstanding reputation as an egalitarian country with a narrow gender gap.But a national debate about gender equality has revealed substantial dissatisfaction, with some Swedes feeling it has gone too far. Rousing controversy now is the issue of gender pedagogy, a concept that emerged in the early 2000s and typically involves challenging gender stereotypes in learning material and in avoiding treating male and female pupils in a stereotypical manner.But what has sharpened the debate in Sweden has been the argument that schools should also be gender neutral, giving children the opportunity to define themselves as neither male nor female if they wish.
Kristina Henkel, a gender expert specializing in equality in schools, disputes the argument that gender pedagogy and neutrality are being foisted on Swedes. "Sweden has a long tradition of working with equality and this has had strong support among politicians, " she says, and adds that "the question of gender neutrality, or of everyone having equal rights despite their gender, has also been driven by activists at the grassroots level. " ButEliseClaeson, a columnist and a former equality expert at the SwedishConfederation of Professions, disagrees. "I have long participated in debates with gender pedagogues and they act like an elite, " she says. "They tend to be well-educated, live in big cities, and have contacts in the media, and they clearly despise traditional people. " Ms.Claeson has been a vocal critic of the word "hen, " a new, gender-neutral pronoun that was recently included in the online version of the NationalEncyclopediA、Around the same time, Sweden’s first gender-neutral children’s book was publisheD、The author, Jesper Lundqvist, uses hen throughout his book, completely avoiding han and hon, the Swedish words for him and her. Claeson believes that the word hen can be harmful to young children because, she says, it can be confusing for them to receive contradicting messages about their genders in school, at home, and in society at large. "It is important to have your gender confirmed to you as a chilD、This does not limit children; it makes them confident about their identity...Children ought to be allowed to mature slowly and naturally.As adults we can choose to expand and change our gender identities. " Last fall, nearly 200 teachers gathered in Stockholm to discuss how to avoid "traditional gender patterns" in schools. The conference was part of a research project run by the NationalAgency forEducation and supported by theDelegation forEquality in Schools. "I work with these issues in Finland and Norway and it is clear to me that they have been inspired by the Swedish preschool — and school curricula, " says Ms. Henkel, the gender expert.But Henkel also insists that gender equality is a rights issue that cannot simply be left to the state to handle. Instead, she says, it requires the active involvement of citizens. "Rights are not something we receive and then don’t have to fight for. This is about a redistribution of power, and for that initiative and action are needed, not just fancy legislation. \ According toEliseClaeson, gender identity ______. A、is crucial for children’s development B、ties children to stereotypical expectations C、may confuse children’s understanding about themselves D、should be confirmed at early age and fixed throughout life
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