Activity 1: Choose the Appropriate gender-fair language for the following terms. Use gender-fair words in a sentence. 1. Chairman- Chair - The Chairs of board directors from different departments of the government were invited to attend a general assembly for assessing the situation of the country. 2. Lady Doctor- Doctor - Doctors, from around the world, are dedicating their crafts and knowledge in providing healthcare for the poverty-stricken communities. 3. Fireman- Firefighter - A Firefighter’s job doesn’t end in extinguishing fire; they are heroes who save thousands of lives. 4. Cameraman- Camera Operator - The Camera Operator, from the famous show “Running Man”, has been trending on twitter for the funny remarks he said during the recording. 5. Stewardess- Flight Attendant - The Flight Attendant served one of the specialties of India, Angara Chicken Masala with salad and roti, for the dinner of the passengers. 6. Fisherman- Fishers - The Fishers are worried for their livelihood due to the upcoming storm. 7. Utilityman- Utility Workers - Utility workers are the people maintaining the public properties and environment around the city. 8. Mailman- Mail Carrier - The dogs around the neighbourhood are considered as the number one enemy of mail carriers. 9. Deliveryman- Delivery Clerk or Courier - Giving tips to delivery clerks is a practice of the Smith family to show their appreciation and gratefulness towards them. 10. Salesman- Sales Clerk - My mother work as a sales clerk before being promoted to a manager. Activity 2- Discuss why gender-fair language should be reinforced? Where does this reinforcement should begin? If this will be reinforced, how this can be relevant in society? The society is laden with numerous issues and problems, from economy, politics, education, poverty, and gender. Gender bias is a rampant disease from the ancient times where a certain gender (most of the times were male) are being favored by the society in terms of opportunities and treatment. This can be attributed to the patriarchal thinking and other influences imposed to us before and after colonization happened in our country. Labels were given, jobs are divided between genders, and society roles were assigned. Without actions, the disease will further spread and be adapted to future generations. As Deborah Tannen stated, cultures are simply habits and patterns gleaned from past experiences. However, what could be a solution? There is a great deal of solutions for eliminating gender bias. It could start from changing the mindset by recognizing other genders, and treat every genders equally in actions and in words. The usage or reinforcement of Gender-Fair language is the first step towards eradicating gender bias. Gender-fair language aims to minimize unnecessary concerns towards gender and give emphasis towards the subject matter. It is evident through neutralization male-masculine forms to unmarked gender forms and making female referents visible. Through this, male and female can be equally represented and acknowledged for their skills, knowledge, and true personality rather than what they were traditionally or stereotypically seen in the society. How could gender-fair language be significant towards the society? The usage of gender-fair language is a way to promote gender equality opening more opportunities for both gender and guaranteeing equal representation in different aspects of society such as politics. First, gender-fair usage of job occupation names such as police officer, firefighter, business owner, and flight attendant expose the idea that jobs are not gender specific, rather it is acquired through interest, skills, and knowledge. Women can hold guns and use their body for physical labors, and men could be stewards, designers, and beauticians. Imposing gender-neutral terminologies for job opportunities can create a more flexible work environment and produce more manpower. Moreover, this will also allow the children and future generations to be free of constraint against ideologies like cooking and housework are for girls while guns, cars, and work are for boys. In addition to this, men and women can be represented equally to the society. Women will be portrayed for who they are and not as what the society expects them to be like a weaker party, housewife, delicate, and no access to power. Men will be portrayed not only for being strong and masculine but also recognizing their emotional needs. This will break stereotypes thinking that pink was for women, men cannot cry or express their feelings, men should be strong and tough, women should be affectionate and submissive, and more. In this way, women could hold power they attain and be given more positions in male dominated industries, and men could exercise their rights especially when they are abused or experience any type of danger against opposite or same sex. Gender bias is a disease that should be cured to prevent further implications to the society. Gender-Fair language is an influential tool that could terminate gender bias. The reinforcement should start with ourselves by changing discriminatory mindset and treat every gender equal, both in actions and words. Language is an exceptional weapon to change and guide the society to eliminate barriers and improve our nation. Activity 3: Based on your observation, how do a man and woman differ/similar in terms of the following communication situation. a. When speaking in public and private? Men were generally confident especially when speaking either publicly or privately. They could freely express their idea and opinions, rarely attempt to please other people, and are conscious of their status. On the other hand, women are more reserve, considerate of others opinion, careful in touching sensitive topics, and focuses in attempting to fit in. For example, men, at a school setting, were mostly the loudest and playful even with their teachers, their conversations can range from studies, games, and even sexual urges in conversations, and are competitive in nature in different things like who’s the tallest which is like seeking superiority or an edge against others. In contrast to women, where they would create groups, they could relate in, be sensitive in emotional matters, and tries to please other people through complimenting them or trying to mold their style and personality to others requirement. b. Telling story Men were objective even when telling stories. They would just give out the important details of the event and mostly focus on humorous parts of the events. Women tend to give longer narratives, extra details which are mostly their speculations and emotional state, and use theme of affiliation. For example, most stories that men would share are funny and exciting experiences and when sharing problems, they mostly just state what they did and how it happens with less to no self-reflection. Yet, when women talk, they could go on for hours even if its just a simple topic, analyze the situation and even express what they felt during the times, and even add details about guesses to why did someone perform those actions or say their words. c. Listening Men tend to focus on helpful information rather than emotional affiliation while women tend to connect more on the emotional tone of the conversation. For example, when there are group activities, men mostly listen and pick-ups information related to the task but when it comes to emotional talks, they became awkward, hard to relate, and even impatient at times. On the other hand, women on group activities will listen and pick ups information about the group activity but will add about topics involving social relations and be more attentive when the topic can invoke their emotions. When it came to emotional talks, they are expressive, good listeners, and even accompany the person patiently. d. Asking questions Men are straightforward and direct to the point when asking questions. They would just ask for what do they need to know. Like when someone had a problem, they would just ask what’s the problem man, do you need help? While women are more likely to beat around the bush, let you open up comfortably, and be considerate. For example, they would first ask if you are okay, are you feeling well, then ask about your story or details, before offering help. e. When resolving conflicts? During conflicts would prioritize the agenda, competitive, and the least to compromise and accommodate other people. To give an instance, when there are fights, they would just speak out words without caring what the other would feel, held their pride, and take the route they could benefit the most out of the problem. In contrast, women values relationship, highly compromising, and feel strong emotions. For an instance, when there are fights, women would let loose their emotions, but would try to preserve the connection and relationship, find solutions that will make more people happy, and yield if there is a need to.
