[Music] Uh, welcome to gender and society chapter 1 introduction where we will explore the realities, rules and struggles and also the triumph of women in the Philippines and around the world. Now as you watch today's video, I want you to think not only as students fulfilling requirements but uh but as future teachers uh shaping a society for gender equality is not just a topic in class but a live reality. [Music] Let's begin with the 1987 Philippine Constitution, Article 2, Section 14, which states, "The state recognizes the role of women in nation building and shall ensure the fundamental equality before the law of women and men." This provision is a legal recognition that women are not secondass citizens, nor mere helpers in the home, but active agents of change and nation building. However, understanding this fully requires looking back at history. Before the Spaniards arrived, Filipino women had relatively high status. The Balins or priestess healers were often women respected as spiritual leaders. Women could own property, inherit land, and engage in trade. Colonial period Spanish colonization imposed patriarchal Catholic values. Women were taught to emulate Maria Clara Demure. Obedient, self-sacrificing. Education for women was limited to domestic skills to prepare them as ideal wives. After independence, women fought for their place in society. In 1937, Filipino women gained the right to vote. By 1986, we saw Corizona Aino become the first female president in Asia, restoring democracy after martial law. In 2001, Gloria Makapagal Aoyo assumed the presidency, proving that leadership is not determined by gender alone. Women have always played critical roles in Philippine society, but their contributions were often hidden or minimized by cultural and colonial influences. Women worldwide face the double burden of professional work plus housework. In many Philippine households, we could observe a female who works full-time yet is expected to cook dinner, supervise children's homework, and serve her husband coffee while he rests after his own workday. There is also the concept of pay gap and glass ceiling. In pay gap, we could see women earning less for the same work as men. In glass ceiling, there exists an invisible barrier preventing women from reaching top positions. In the Philippines, data from PSA 2018 showed women earn about 20% less than men in equivalent roles. Few women hold CEO or COO positions in the country's top corporations despite equal or higher qualifications. Here are also some global cultural practices determental to women. In Bangladesh, women could not take bank loans without a male co-signer. In India, Pakistan, millions of girls are denied education due to poverty, cultural practices or early marriage. In subsaharan Africa, female genital mutilation persists in some communities, violating human rights. In China, the lotus feet, tradition bound girls feet to make them small, considered beautiful, but causing lifelong disability. There are also some Philippine cultural examples such as the term bobby lang yen implying women are weaker or less competent. There is also an expectation that daughters handle household chores while sons play basketball, study or rest. In some marriages, we could see church leaders telling brides to be submissive to their husbands. Girls are also often told to be Maria Clara, discouraging assertiveness in girls. These traditions and beliefs are not harmless culture. They restrict opportunities, cause harm, and reinforce inequality. The Philippines has established important legal protections to advance gender equality and combat discrimination. Among these is the Antisexual Harassment Act of 1995, Republic Act 7877, which was one of the country's earliest gender focused laws. This landmark legislation defines sexual harassment in workplaces, educational institutions, and training environments, prohibiting unwanted verbal, non-verbal, or physical conduct of a sexual nature that creates an intimidating or hostile environment. The law requires all organizations to establish internal procedures for handling complaints, making it particularly relevant for future educators who will help maintain safe learning spaces. Another critical law is the Antiviolence Against Women and their children act of 2004, RA9262, which provides comprehensive protection from various forms of abuse, including physical, sexual, psychological, and economic violence. A common example of prohibited behavior under this law would be a spouse threatening to withhold financial support as a means of control, which constitutes economic abuse. The Magna Carta of Women, RA9710, builds on these protections by affirming women's rights to equal opportunities and access to essential services. It mandates gender responsive programs in health, education, and employment, requiring government agencies to remove barriers that perpetuate discrimination. More recently, the Safe Spaces Act, RA11313, commonly called the Bal Bastos Law, expanded protections against gender-based harassment in public areas, online platforms, workplaces, and educational institutions. This law specifically addresses behaviors like cat calling, stalking, and misogynistic remarks that create hostile environments. Its implementation in schools is especially significant as it compels educational institutions to develop policies against sexual harassment and gender-based bullying. These laws collectively represent the Philippines commitment to creating a more equitable society. And as future educators, understanding these legal frameworks will be crucial in fostering safe, inclusive, and respectful learning environments for all students. The entertainment industry frequently diminishes women's professional contributions while amplifying their physical appearance. A telling example occurred during Marvel's press tours where Scarlett Johansson, Black Widow, was routinely asked about her skintight costume and diet, while her male co-stars discussed character development and stunt training. This disparity reveals how media often reduces accomplished women to their looks rather than their craft. The music industry shows similar biases. At the 2008 Beijing Olympics opening ceremony, organizers replaced 7-year-old singer Yangp deemed not cute enough with another girl who lip-synced the performance. This shocking incident exposed how even children face objectification with talent secondary to appearance standards. Literature also reflects these patterns. Hemingways The Old Man and the Sea contains no substantive female characters, while Philippine literary classics often confine women to supporting roles as wives or love interests. These portrayals deny women narrative agency and reinforce restrictive gender norms. The opposition of some religious sectors to the passage of the reproductive law exemplifies how patriarchal institutions shape gender relations through policy control. The Catholic Church's opposition to the RH law reveals three critical dimensions of gender and society. First, it demonstrates institutional patriarchy in action as a male-dominated hierarchy making decisions about female bodies while excluding women from doctrinal decision-making. The bishop's claims about morality and family values reflected gendered notions of female sexuality as needing control rather than autonomy. Second, it highlights class dimensions of reproductive oppression. While affluent women access private health care, poor women faced deadly consequences. This shows how gender intersects with socioeconomic status to compound marginalization. The 11 daily maternal deaths weren't merely medical failures, but manifestations of structural violence against disadvantaged women. Third, the decadel long delay in implementation underscores how religious institutions maintain cultural hegemony in Philippine society. By framing contraception as morally equivalent to abortion despite theological differences, the church weaponized doctrine to preserve traditional gender roles where women's primary value lies in motherhood. This historical moment crystallizes core gender and society themes how power operates through institutions, how discourses shape bodily autonomy, and why reproductive rights remain fundamental to gender equality. The RH law controversy serves as a critical lens for examining whose voices dominate societal debates about women's rights and at human cost. Patriarchy constitutes a social system wherein male dominance permeates political, economic and familial institutions. As we examine its manifestations in Philippine society, we observe how patriarchal structures operate through seemingly mundane daily practices. Within domestic spheres, gendered power dynamics emerge through asymmetrical decision-making authority and chore allocation. Research indicates that even in dual inome households, fathers typically retain final authority over major financial decisions, while mothers disproportionately shoulder domestic labor. Notably, sons are frequently exempted from household chores that daughters are expected to perform, reinforcing early socialization into traditional gender roles. Educational institutions perpetuate these patterns through subtle but systemic biases. Classroom observations reveal teachers disproportionately calling on male students for STEM-related questions while directing female students toward administrative tasks. Leadership opportunities in academic settings often follow gendered patterns with boys encouraged toward executive roles and girls channeled into supportive positions. The professional domain manifests patriarchy through unequal expectations and opportunity structures. Women face disproportionate demands for emotional labor and organizational tasks beyond their formal job descriptions, a phenomenon particularly evident in female dominated professions like education. Simultaneously, informal networking opportunities frequently exclude women who contend with greater domestic responsibilities. Popular culture functions as both reflector and reinforcer of patriarchal norms. Media representations persistently associate women with domestic roles while depicting men as primary decision makers, naturalizing these unequal distributions of labor and authority. [Music] As future educators, we can integrate foundational educational frameworks with gender studies to create transformative classrooms. Paulo Fr's critical pedagogy reminds us that education is inherently political and by examining gender textbook representations or analyzing occupational stereotypes, we equip students to question rather than accept social hierarchies. Constructivist approaches take this further by having students reflect on their lived experiences with gender norms through journaling or role-balanced group work, fostering personal connections to systemic issues. Bloom's taxonomy provides a roadmap for deepening engagement from defining concepts like patriarchy, remembering to debating policy solutions, evaluating and designing inclusive classrooms, creating. When we teach dance, for instance, having all students explore both folk and street styles challenges rigid gender expressions. These frameworks collectively show how education can dismantle barriers. While gender inequities persist, our classrooms can become spaces of hope where critical thinking, lived experience, and purposeful pedagogy converge to nurture a more equitable generation. This is the promise of gender and society that through education transformation is not just possible but already beginning. [Music]