The Virtual Library:
Gender Equity

CLICK TO RETURN TO: VIRTUAL LIBRARY TABLE OF CONTENTS

Title IX and Sexual Harassment. Sexual harassment in schools is a deeply complex and pervasive problem. The statistics reported in this article by Susan J. Smith of the Women's Educational Equity Fund (a division of the Department of Education) are disturbing in many ways: high rates of reported harassment, the nature of the harassment, and incidence of victims who also admit to being perpetuators. This article also explains how parents and students can use Title IX to fight harassment.

Justices Say Schools Liable In Sex Harassment Cases. With the high incident of student-to-student harassment, and the changing forms of harassment, the Supreme Court's ruling that schools can be held liable for student against student sexual harassment will come as a relief to parents who have encountered indifferent school officials. This article reports by Harriet Chiang on the ruling and its implications to parents and school officials.

The Trouble With Single-Sex Schools. Wendy Kaminer raises an eyebrow to the proponents of single-sex education. Taking in the long view, this well-researched article provides an historical perspective of all-girls schools, which provides the background for her exposure of the contradictory politics in play in today's debate on the value of segregated education. Reporting on studies that cast doubt on the success of single-sex education, Kaminer suggests that the presence or absence of boys has little to do with academic success.

Title IX's Success Makes it an easy Target. While this article concerns the state of collegiate level athletics in the state of Washington, it addresses a burgeoning myth that Title IX is responsible for cuts in men's sports. This is a myth that prevails at the high school level as well, and Jeanne Kohl-Welles does an excellent job of straightening out the facts.

Vocational Education in the School Reform Movement. Reporting on reform issues in vocational education with an eye on gender equity, this articles raises concerns that girls are not pursuing, or often even aware of, the more lucrative career opportunities that are now technically open to them. Sundra Flansburg's section on gender self-segregation is of particular interest to those interested in understanding why.