Women’s Web is saying Goodbye! Please make sure you read this important notification.
While we may understand the importance of educating our daughters, we still prioritise the sons' learning over daughters'. What is this new form inequality?
While we may understand the importance of educating our daughters, we still prioritise the sons’ learning over daughters’. What is this new form inequality?
I have spent 26 years of my life in Rajasthan and gone through several ups and downs and come out of them. It has been a roller coaster of a journey for me but one thing I have always noticed is the status of women in our society. And every time, the society adds a new form of inequality to all the existing ones, women learn a new skill to battle it and pretend to be happy.
My family is not different that other families. But there is one difference – they know the importance and value of education. My family wants to educate their children, irrespective of gender. They believe in quality education but not equality for everyone in several aspects of life. However, with time, I believe, they are changing.
At the same time, not all girls are lucky enough be educated. This is mostly because families believe that if a girl is educated, it won’t be easy to control her dreams and aspirations. May be they think that the girls’ aspirations will break and blur the set norms that society has set for the women.
Some girls do manage to complete their schooling but getting admitted into colleges is still a dream for them even in the 21st century. It took centuries for girls to be able to get an education but will it another few centuries to let the girls go to nearby towns for higher education?
The girls who do enrol themselves for higher education are barely able to manage going outside their house without a male member of the family. These girls are happy that they can at least access higher education but quite often, they are not allowed to use their mobile phones or laptops.
They aren’t allowed to talk to their friends since their families believe that the girls might start talking to unknown males and that might destroy the family’s respect. All this might break the social structure and culturally classifying boundaries set for girls.
With the recently pandemic, women’s conditions are only worsening. They are constantly home with family members monitoring their activities. The women, quite often, cannot talk to anyone about their problems or ask for help.
Across the world, educational institutions are adapting the digital mode of learning for their students. Online education is bringing a whole new form of inequality for the poor and the ones living in remote areas with barely any internet connection.
If the family can somehow afford a mobile phone or laptop for their kids, it is always the boy who gets to first use the technology to attend classes. This brings a whole new challenge for the girls and produces a completely new inequality for the girls. I don’t know when we’ll get equal education without adding a whole new inequality for our girls.
Dear society, I know you are worried about your son’s future and really, there is nothing wrong with that. My only request is that please be a little sensitive about your daughter and her future as well!
Picture credits: Pexels
read more...
Women's Web is an open platform that publishes a diversity of views, individual posts do not necessarily represent the platform's views and opinions at all times.
Stay updated with our Weekly Newsletter or Daily Summary - or both!
Please enter your email address