SCHOOL-BASED POLICY ON STRENGTHENING DIFFERENT COMMUNICATION PATTERNS BETWEEN MEN AND WOMEN

SCHOOL-BASED POLICY ON STRENGTHENING DIFFERENT COMMUNICATION PATTERNS BETWEEN MEN AND WOMEN

I. INTRODUCTION

          Enclosed in the Gender Responsive Basic Education Policy, under DepEd Order No. 32, s. 2017 that the Department of Education commits to integrate the principles of gender equality, gender equity, gender sensitivity, non-discrimination and human rights to ensure access to quality basic education for all.

            Through this policy, the DepEd commits to gender equality through gender responsive basic education to holistically develop Filipinos with access to quality, culture-based basic education in a learner-friendly safe, and nurturing environment with the provision to continuously improve its support systems at all level of governance.

            As part of this policy, Anselmo A. Sandoval Memorial National High School provides school-based guidelines and policies that shall allow inclusive education that ensures girls’ and boys’ and women’s and men’s equal access to learning opportunities as well as fair treatment in the learning process.

II. POLICY STATEMENT

          Anselmo A. Sandoval Memorial National High School aims to:

·         Understand gender in communication and raise student’s awareness regarding the ways in which gender is created, maintained, and/or changed through communication.

·         Eliminate discrimination in performing gender-based activities

·         Promote equitable activities and projects for “girls and boys” and “men and women” within an organization that ensures equal opportunities and treatment of learning and recognizable outcomes.

·         Promote wide participation and involvement in any school and community activities or projects regardless of gender.

III. DEFINITION OF TERMS

Communication Patterns	Refers to structures in which communication flows in an organization which can be classified as verbal and non-verbal and writtenl
Gender	Gender refers to the state of being of being male or female, with reference not only biological but also to social and cultural differences.
Gender and Development (GAD	Refers to the development perspective and process that is participatory and empowering, equitable, sustainable, free from violence, respectful of human rights, supportive of self-determination and actualization of human potentials. It seeks to achieve gender equality as a fundamental value that should be reflected in development choices and contends that women are active agents of development, not just passive recipients of development Source: PCW Memorandum Circular No. 2011-01
Gender Awareness	Refers to the ability to identify problems arising from gender inequality and discrimination, even if these are not immediately apparent. Source: UNGEI (DepEd Order No. 32, s. 2017)
Gender-Based Discrimination	Refers to any gender-based distinction, exclusion or restriction that has the effect or purpose of impairing or nullifying the recognition, enjoyment or exercise by men and women regardless of their sexual orientation, gender identity, and civil status, on the basis of equality of men and women, of human rights and fundamental freedoms in the political, economic, social, cultural, civil, or any other field. Source: DepEd Order No. 32, s. 2017
Gender Equality	Refers to the principles asserting the equality of men and women and their rights to enjoy equal conditions realizing their full human potentials to contribute to and benefit from the results of development, and with the state recognizing that all human beings are free and equal in dignity and rights. Source: MCW (DepEd Order No. 32, s. 2017)
Gender Equity	Moves beyond a focus on equal treatment. It means giving to those who have less on the basis of needs, and taking steps to compensate for historical and social disadvantages that prevent women and men from otherwise operating on a level playing field. Source: NCRFW (DepEd Order No. 32, s. 2017)
Gender Expression	Refers to the way in which a person acts to communicate gender within a given culture.
Gender-Fair Language	Is understood as language that is gender sensitive or non-sexist Source: DepEd Order No. 32, s. 2017
Gender Identity	Is understood to refer to each person’s deeply felt internal and individual experience of gender, which may or may not correspond with the sex assigned at birth, including the personal sense of the body (which may involve, if freely chosen, modification of bodily appearance  by medical, surgical, or other means) and other expressions of gender, including dress, speech and mannerisms. Source: Yogyakarta Principles (DepEd Order No. 32, s. 2017)
Gender-Responsive Basic Education (GRBE)	Is inclusive education that ensures girls’ and boys’ and women’s and men’s equal access to learning opportunities, addresses gender-based barriers and the intersection of different forms of discrimination, takes affirmative steps where necessary to reduce gender gaps and disparities in the management of the learning process, provides children a learner-friendly environment that addresses their diverse learning needs and results in the progressive achievement of gender equality in educational outcomes. Source: DepEd Order No. 32, s. 2017
Gender Mainstreaming in Education	Is the process of assessing the implications for girls and boys or women and men of any planned action, including legislation, policies or programs, at all levels of the education system. It is a strategy for making girls’ and women’s as well as boys’ and men’s, concerns and experiences an integral dimension of the design, implementation, monitoring, and evaluation of education policies and programs so that girls and boys or women and men benefit equally, and inequality is not perpetuated. The ultimate goal is to achieve gender equality in education. Source: ECOSOC 1997/2 (DepEd Order No. 32, s. 2017)
Gender Responsiveness	Refers to taking action to correct gender bias and discrimination so as to ensure gender equality and equity. It entails consistent and systematic attention to the differences between men and women with a view to addressing structural constraints to gender equality Source: DepEd Order No. 32, s. 2017
GAD Plan and Budget (GPB)	Is not about creating separate budgets for women, or solely increasing spending on women’s programs. Rather, gender-responsive budgeting seeks to ensure that the collection and allocation of public resources is carried out in ways that are effective and contribute to advancing gender equality and women’s empowerment. It should be based on in-depth analysis that identifies effective interventions for implementing policies and laws that advance women’s rights. It provides tools to assess the different needs and contributions of men and women, and boys and girls within the existing revenues, expenditures, and allocations and calls for adjusting budget policies to benefit all groups. Source: UN Women (DepEd Order No. 32, s. 2017)
Gender Sensitivity	Is the ability to perceive existing gender differences, issues and inequalities and to incorporate these into strategies and actions. Source: Intrahealth International (DepEd Order No. 32, s. 2017)
Intersectionality	Is an analytical tool for studying, understanding, and responding to the ways in which sex and gender intersect with and are constituted by other social factors such as age, class, disability, ethnicity, race, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression, and other status. Source: DepEd Order No. 32, s. 2017
Violence Against Women and their Children (VAWC)	Refers to any act of gender-based violence that results in, or is likely to result in physical, sexual or psychological harm or suffering to women, including threats of such acts, coercion or arbitrary deprivation of liberty, whether occurring in public or private life, as provided under Republic Act 9262 or The Anti-Violence Against Women and their Children Act of 2014. Source: DepEd Order No. 32, s. 2017
Violence Against Children Committed in Schools	Refers to a single act or a series of acts committed by school administrators, academic, and non-academic personnel against a child, which result in or is likely to result in physical, sexual, psychological harm or suffering, or other abuses including threats of such acts, battery, assault, coercion, harassment, or arbitrary deprivation of liberty. It includes, but is not limited to, physical, sexual, psychological violence, and other acts of violence of a physical, sexual, or psychological nature that are prejudicial to the best interest of the child. Source: DepEd Order No. 32, s. 2017

IV. STRENGHTHENING DIFFERENT COMMUNICATION PATTERNS BETWEEN MEN AND WOMEN

            Communication between men and women can be considered cross-cultural communication. People in different cultures speak different dialects. In fact, John Gray in his book, Men are From Mars, Women are From Venus, suggests that men and women communicate in such different ways that they seem to be from different planets. There are numerous general differences that characterize gender communication.

Before clarifying some distinctive in gender communication, several basic assumptions must be accepted.

·         Men and women do have different conversational styles.

·         Both styles of communication are equally valid.

·         The goal in gender communication is not change the style of communication but to adapt to the differences. (Source: Communication Between Men and Women, Rhonda H. Kelley)

The goal of this policy is not changing the styles of each communication patterns among men and women but to adapt to these differences so that there will be a more open communication between each gender. Inside the classroom, this policy aims to address the differences encountered and how it can be developed so that no gender will be ahead of the other when it comes to communicating.

            Anselmo A. Sandoval Memorial National High School is committed to mold students to learn the following as part of its efforts to be a Gender-Responsive institution of learning:

1.    Become aware of his/her own communication styles.

2.    Understand the communication style of the opposite sex.

3.    Adjust to those conversational styles.

4.    Alter his/her conversation style to fit the context.

5.    Don’t assume that the different gender apart from his/her understand his/her message.

6.    Don’t criticize others who communicate in different ways.

V. POLICY MONITORING AND EVALUATION

            The School GFPS shall gather feedback on the implementation of of this policy from all concerned internal and external stakeholders. It shall conduct a periodic review of the school-based policy to further enhanced its provisions and effectiveness and if it adheres to DepEd Order No. 32, s. 2017.