‘My daughter would not be participating’: Middle school teacher brings archaic gender roles back to the classroom, divides parents

It’s 2024, and we’re still fighting for women’s rights like it’s the 1950s. No really! Women are still battling for control over their own bodies — from Texas to Tehran — you’d think the last thing we’d see is a middle school dusting off the ancient playbook on gender roles with a bit too much zeal.

But here we are, folks. A concerned parent on TikTok, @nicoxrette, shared her daughter’s experience in this so-called “educational” simulation. Her daughter’s middle school teacher decided to take their students on a time-traveling adventure back to ancient Greece, but instead of focusing on the rich history and culture, it seems they chose to highlight the secondary position of women in society.

It all began when the mother’s 7th-grade girl came home with a paper outlining the simulation’s guidelines. As per the rules, the girls in the class have to be escorted by a boy just to enter the room. And as if that wasn’t enough of a slap in the face, the girls — sorry, “females” (yes, that’s how they were referred to) — are also solely responsible for cleaning up the “city-state” every single day. For 4-5 weeks straight. That’s right, for nearly a month, these students will be living in a classroom that perpetuates the notion that women are subservient to men.

@nicoxrette explained that her daughter felt uncomfortable and frustrated with the simulation’s rules. “They’re doing so many other cool things with this simulation experience,” she said. “They get Greek names, be shown how to wear Greek clothes. They’re going to be asked to act in a short drama, build temples, represent their city-states in Olympic events, and take part in intellectual discussions, among other activities. So why was this even necessary?” Excellent question, @nicoxrette. Why indeed.

Teaching history does not require reenacting oppressive practices. We can educate students about the inequalities and injustices of the past without perpetuating them in the present. By doing so, we risk normalizing and trivializing the very issues we should be working to eradicate. TikTok users echoed the concerns raised by @nicoxrette. One user astutely pointed out, “Does the paper actually say ‘females’ and then ‘boys’ because that’s also such a yikes.” The language used in the guidelines is just as problematic as the exercise itself.

Another user, who identified themselves as a teacher with a Master’s thesis on classroom simulations, emphasized the importance of maintaining equal power dynamics among students for simulations to be effective. The current setup, as per the commentator, fails to meet this criterion.

“I’m a teacher who wrote my Master’s thesis about classroom simulations. They only work if the power dynamics stay equal among students.”

Some users came up with the bright idea of tweaking the simulation so that both boys and girls can take turns playing “second-class citizen.” While this might dial down the harm a notch, it still completely misses the bigger picture. Why are we keen on giving any student a taste of discrimination and unequal treatment all in the name of education?

The teacher’s decision to implement this simulation shows a lack of understanding and sensitivity towards the diverse backgrounds and experiences of their students. Some of these students have already battled more discrimination and harassment than anyone should face in a lifetime because of their gender, race, or more. Subjecting them to additional trauma in the classroom is not only irresponsible but also potentially damaging to their mental health and well-being. 

Furthermore, studies have shown that exposure to toxic ideas in the classroom can warp students’ career aspirations and self-perception. The Guardian notes that by the age of six, girls were already less likely than boys to view their own gender as brilliant, shying away from activities said to require intellectual prowess. An extended activity further marginalizing girls at this age seems ill-advised and potentially damaging.

At the end of the day, this entire fiasco could have been avoided with a more thoughtful approach to teaching history. I, for one, would rather leave ancient Greece’s sexism buried in the sands of time, never to be resurrected again. Why dig up such relics when they’ve done more than their fair share of damage already?