Urbina, Ruby T

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Loyola Marymount University

Catholic Education: A Journal of Inquiryand PracticeVolume 10 | Issue 4 Article 136-1-2007Same Difference: How Gender Myths Are HurtingOur Relationships, Our Children, and Our Jobs, byRosalind Barnett & Caryl RiversRuby T. UrbinaFollow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.lmu.edu/ceThis Book Review is brought to you for free with open access by the School of Education at Digital Commons at Loyola Marymount University andLoyola Law School. It has been accepted for publication in Catholic Education: A Journal of Inquiry and Practice by the journal's editorial board andhas been published on the web by an authorized administrator of Digital Commons at Loyola Marymount University and Loyola Law School. Formore information about Digital Commons, please contact digitalcommons@lmu.edu. To contact the editorial board of Catholic Education: A Journalof Inquiry and Practice, please email CatholicEdJournal@lmu.edu.Recommended CitationUrbina, R. T. (2007). Same Difference: How Gender Myths Are Hurting Our Relationships, Our Children, and Our Jobs, by RosalindBarnett & Caryl Rivers. Journal of Catholic Education, 10 (4). http://dx.doi.org/10.15365/joce.1004132013originally emerged in our country as a call to community and in response to theperceived threat of Protestant-based public schools. Nearly all Catholic elemen-tary schools were established as part of a parish and part of a community of notonly common religious beliefs, but also of similar culture, thought, and action.With the number of Catholic K-12 schools currently decreasing and enrollmentdeclining, one must consider the mission of Catholic schools and what is missingfrom them today that was vibrant decades earlier. We must look at methods ofcommunity building that were key features in Catholic schools at the time of theirestablishment, that still exist in spirit and as an ideal, and that can perhaps comealive using models of building social capital. Within the context of a church thatis hierarchical in structure, we must work to have all constituents involved andheard in the process of reclaiming and reinventing the greater community ofCatholic schools in the United States. Parents, students, teachers, administrators,parishioners, and community members must all feel invested in the process ofrevitalizing and strengthening the network of Catholic schools, as seen in similarscenarios described by Putnam and Feldstein. The stories from Better Togethermust do more than inspire. They must be a call to action. Scott Kmack is the dean of academics at Trinity Catholic High School in Newton, MA.SAME DIFFERENCE: HOW GENDER MYTHSARE HURTING OUR RELATIONSHIPS, OURCHILDREN, AND OUR JOBSROSALIND BARNETT & CARYL RIVERSBASIC BOOKS, 2004$ 25.00, 289 pagesReviewed by Ruby T. Urbina“People’s behavior today is determined more by situation than by gender” (p.5). Same Difference: How Gender Myths Are Hurting Our Relationships,Our Children, and Our Jobs explores how power makes the difference, notnecessarily gender. The book is divided into three parts: relationships, work,and parenting.BOOK REVIEWS 533534 Catholic Education/June 2007The authors refute many myths, presumptions, and misconceptionsabout the differences between men and women. Part 1 of the book providesdifferent examples that foster the view that the woman’s role is that of care-taker, responsible for answering to the needs of her husband and family.Starting in Genesis, we find the idea that a woman (Eve) was created to takecare of the man (Adam). Using science and intellectual insight, the authorstake on the most popular myths of gender difference. This book strongly rec-ommends the improvement of relationships between men and women. Historically, men have been the breadwinners of the family. Today, dueto the demands of society and the greater needs of families, both parents areforced to work to make ends meet. Since this shift, a drastic change in rela-tionships has begun to surface within members of the family and the so-called harmony has begun to fade, probably because of pressures at work. This book not only discusses relationships between adult males andfemales, but it also talks about young boys and girls as well. Researchersclaim that boys are better in mathematics than girls. The influential journal,Science, published a study under the headline “Math and Sex: Are Girls Bornwith Less Ability?” Time presented it as the “Gender Factor in Math.” Thestudy became a major national story, and many parents worried that theirdaughters would not be able to compete with their male peers in mathemat-ics. According to the authors, the reporter who is responsible for this did notgo over the significance of statistics and failed to emphasize that the keyissue is not the size of the difference in the average scores of the boys andgirls. What is really important is the difference in the range of scores in eachgroup. The three studies conducted by these researchers concluded that girls’and boys’ math scores are roughly equivalent. They also emphasized thatwomen succeed not only in math but also in the field of science, engineer-ing, and within the technology workforce. Excellence in women in these dif-ferent fields was proven by different statistics cited in this book. The authorsadded, “this kind of progress won’t be widespread until we stop believingthat males are innately superior at math just as we have stopped believingthat the earth is flat” (p. 171).Gradually, we have established social views about women and their rolein a relationship. Our views are natural and we have grown up listening aboutthese traditional outlooks. Many social commentators cite that men are bet-ter leaders. Among the reasons given are that women do not have the righthormones. Their brains are built for empathizing, which is only good formaking friends, caring for the baby, and gossiping. Also, women lack themotivation for leadership and are violating their essential feminine natureswhen they try to lead. In short, these social commentators believe thatwomen will never achieve as much as men in the work world. This reviewerBOOK REVIEWS 535commends the authors for pointing out that if we believe the myths about awoman’s inability to lead in the workforce, we will also harm the corpora-tions for which they work.The last part of this book talks about parenting. Both authors agree thatthere is no difference between the two sexes; they are equal in potential, butvaried in behavior. This section shows that fathers are also capable of doingthe day-to-day caring for children, such as fixing a daughter’s hair, playingwith children, and interacting with them. Parenting behavior is neitherinborn nor socially transferred to one sex, but is learned by caregiving in aspecific situation. The authors provide several examples to support their argument, refut-ing stereotypes and rationalizations about differences between the sexes.From mathematical aptitude to maternal intuition, the authors explore andtake apart many generally accepted conceptions of male and female destiny.Each chapter in the book focuses on myths that are thoroughly misunder-stood by our society. Their conclusions provide a different point of view toward gender anddiminish the already established notion of innate difference between thesexes. After extensive and quite exhaustive research, Barnett and Riversdemystify several myths and depict how society has influenced human think-ing and behavior. As a result, people often make poor and sometimes incor-rect decisions. Furthermore, the authors lay out a marvelous resource foreducators that instills the notion of gender difference as irrelevant to educa-tion. It suggests getting rid of misconceptions and presumptions of gender.Students, both male and female, should not consider themselves superior orinferior. They should perceive their fellow classmates and everyone aroundthem to be equal in potential and in ability. Educators must help their stu-dents in this matter. Educators must accept that there is no academic differ-ence between males and females. Education is optimistic; hence, educatorsshould be optimistic, believing that both males and females have the poten-tial to do anything they desire. The authors of this book tell their readers thatthere is no difference in gender. They insist that it is society that is setting themisconceptions and erroneous judgment.Ruby T. Urbina is principal of Immaculate Conception School in Rio Grande City, TX.

Same Difference: How Gender Myths Are Hurting Our Relationships, Our Children, and Our Jobs, by Rosalind Barnett & Caryl Rivers

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Same Difference: How Gender Myths Are Hurting Our Relationships, Our Children, and Our Jobs, by Rosalind Barnett & Caryl Rivers

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