Chapter 6: Toward A Gender Inclusive Vision For Powerful and Authentic Social Studies

The literature reviewed here offers a glimpse into how to best prepare preservice and inservice teachers to do the work of teaching students about the status quo, how to disrupt it, and how to create their version of “a more perfect union.” Without knowing what the state of gender is in teacher education, teacher educators are at risk of offering anemic, misguided, or inadequate preparation for teaching about gender. Currently, gender is presented in a male-dominated, binary manner in teacher education programs and curricular materials, and little growth toward gender equity has been documented in recent years. Recommendations for preservice and inservice teachers, as well as research are offered.