As previous posters have already stated, the school environment propagates gender roles mostly inadvertently. These gender roles are instilled into children in almost every arena of their lives, even at home, and quite often before the child is even born by choosing to paint their room either blue or pink. Of course, this is a result of society's expectations for what a 'normal' child must be like, and this goes as far as what a child dresses like, what they sound like when they speak, what they enjoy doing and the types of friends they're supposed to hang out with.
I am not suggesting this gender role expectations are a bad thing, or that they are even damaging. I think human nature will always insure that just as cultures identify by their music, accent, dress styles, etc..., that genders will too, find ways to respresent their gender and identify within their own gender. One negative aspect of this natural tendency of sociological behavior is that it encourages a certain type of ignorance. It is the same type of thinking that makes it "weird" for a girl play with cars and a boy to play with dolls. If our culture had established that it was expected and normal for a girl to play with toy cars then I think they would indeed, be doing it.
Considering all of this leads me to believe that gender roles have their function with every society, however, the actual expectations, the actual ways of behaving or dressing etcetera, are completely arbitrary and subject to change; this is I believe, what is important that students and adults alike understand. (AI)
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