I.

Unit of Competency : Work with Others

II. Module Title : Observing Gender Sensitivity in the Workplace
III. Activity Title : Differentiating Sex from Gender

IV. Learning Objectives :

At the end of this activity, the trainees will be able to differentiate between sex
and gender.

V. Methodology
 Individual Reflection
 Interactive Lecture
 Plenary Discussion

VI. Materials: any 2 colored metacards (for each trainee)– preferably pink and blue,
pentel pens, white board, marker, scissors, masking tape

VII. Timeframe: 1.5 hours

VIII. Processing the Learning Activity

A. Analysis
What to Do (Activity) What to Say (Narrative)
(Introduction)

Flash the first slide of the PowerPoint In this module, you will start your journey on
presentation. understanding the different aspects and
nuances of gender and how it affects your
attitude, values and perceptions towards
yourself and others in various intervention
settings.

The first step to your journey is gender

awareness. Gender awareness is a way of
seeing, a perspective insights which form our
understanding of people and society. It
means looking at things with new eyes, which
are constantly open to new learning.

‘Observing Gender Sensitivity in the

Workplace’ is one of the modules under
Practicing Career Professionalism. The
learning outcomes of this module are:
1. Discuss the differences between sex and
gender;
2. Analyze the different manifestations of
gender inequality in TVET, in
entrepreneurship and in society; and
3. Discuss gender- and rights-based
approach to sexual and reproductive
health including HIV-AIDS awareness and
 prevention.

Before we start the first activity, we have

certain ground rules to follow for
listening/sharing of ideas and opinions.

a) The exercises are not a contest of

ideas and opinions.
b) Listen while another person
speaks. Do not speak at the same
time.
c) Respect the opinions of others and
understand where the person is
coming from. Everybody is entitled
to his/her opinion even if we do not
agree with her/him.
d) Avoid being judgmental.

In nearly all societies, men and women,

boys and girls have different status and play
different roles. Men and women behave
differently, dress differently, have different
attitudes and interests, and have different
leisure activities. Contrary to traditionally
held beliefs that these differences between
male and female behavior are biologically or
genetically determined, recent research has
revealed that they are to a large extent
socially constructed, or based on the concept
of gender.

Now, what do you think is the difference

between sex and gender or are they one and
the same?
(Elicit spontaneous responses from the
trainees)

In our first activity, you will find out if there is

a difference between sex and gender.
Write the word male/boy on a blue metacard and
female/girl on a pink metacard. Make two columns
on the board and post each metacard. Give each
trainee 1 blue and 1 pink metacards. Ask the
participants to write on the metacards what
qualities, physical characteristics, roles and
behaviour are identified with being a man/woman.
Give them 10 minutes to write their responses in
the metacards and post them in the appropriate
column. (Give 1-2 examples to tickle their minds).
Interchange the headings and ask the participants
if those qualities/characteristics they identified with
male can also be attributed or ascribed to female
or vice versa under the new heading.

Put a check () mark to those qualities/physical

characteristics/roles that apply to both sexes.
Take out the metacards that do not apply under
the new category/heading and post them to a new
column.

Note: If you notice that there are no sex related

characteristics posted on the board, ask another
tickler questions such as:
 “Ano ang meron sa babae na wala sa
lalake?”
 “Anong kayang gawin ng babae na hindi
kayang gawin ng lalake?”
The qualities/characteristics that will be left behind
pertain to GENDER and the ones that are taken
out and posted to a new column refer to SEX.
Ask the class to make their own definition of sex Guide questions for processing after the
and gender using the metacards. Use the words activity:
that the trainees have written on the metacards to 1. What is sex? What is gender?
form their own definition of sex and gender. 2. What is the difference between sex and
Process their responses using the guide gender?
questions. 3. What did you learn about being a boy/girl?
Where did you learn it?
4. How do you feel about these new
discoveries about sex and gender?
Give lecture-discussion about the difference of
gender and sex. (Refer to PowerPoint
presentation No. 2)
To synthesize the various inputs from the
participants, use the abstraction/synthesis
questions shown below.

After the participative analysis, you can now draw

a general conclusion by referring to the key
learning points presented below. You may want to
highlight the substantive realizations of the
participants.

In order to deepen the realization and learning of

the trainees, give out Application activity shown
below.

B. Abstraction/Synthesis
1. What did we learn from the activities?
 2. What do the differences tell us about gender in contrast to sex?
3. What did you appreciate from the activities?
4. How will you apply your new learning/s to your life?

C. Key Learning Points (Summary)

• SEX refers to the natural distinguishing variable based on biological

characteristics of being a woman or a man. It refers to physical attributes
pertaining to a person’s body contours, features, genitals, hormones, genes,
chromosomes and reproductive organs.

• Sex is biologically determined while gender is socially and culturally

constructed. Our sex-roles and gender-roles are also different. Our sex-roles
are imposed on us by nature (through the basic physiological and anatomical
differences between men and women), our gender-roles are usually defined
by society (there are behaviours/roles which are deemed as either masculine
or feminine by society).
• GENDER refers to roles, attitudes and values assigned by culture and society
to women and men. These roles, attitudes and values define the behaviors of
women and men and the relationship between them.
o Other variables, such as ethnicity, caste, class, age and ability intersect
with gender differences.

• Society tends to assign roles, attitudes, behaviours, characteristics and

expectations to individuals based on their biological differences. This
tendency results in unequal relations between female and male where male
are often viewed as the superior sex mainly because of their stronger physical
characteristics
• Awareness of these differences will encourage and help us find ways to
lessen and eventually close these gaps between women and men in our
society.

D. Application

In order to test the understanding of the participants on sex and gender, ask them to
answer the following in a plenary. Refer to the PowerPoint presentation No. 4. Each
participant is given the chance to read one (1) statement shown in the PowerPoint
and gives his/her appropriate answer if the statement is gender – related or sex –
related. Ask the group whether they agree or disagree with the answer.

No. Statements Answer

1 Women have a developed uterus and can become pregnant. S
2 Women as mothers and wives are pre-determined roles. They can G
also be good peacemakers. However, they are not to be trusted with
major decisions, since they operate not by reason but by intuition or
worse, whim
3 The voice pitch of the boys changes as he grows older S
4 Men have underdeveloped breasts. S
5 Decision making in the community and the larger society is dominated G
by men, because it is they who are involved in the economic activities
 that society values
6 Men grow beard while women do not grow a beard S

7 Most male and female differ from body hair distribution and muscular S
development
8 Sex chromosomes present in the sperm determine whether the S
offspring are genetically male or female
9 I am a woman and so I am not a good planner and decision maker G
10 In Asia, including the Philippines, women provide from 50% to 90% of G
labor for rice cultivation (UN-FAO)
11 Women give birth to babies, men do not. S
12 Little girls are gentle, boys are tough. G
13 In one case, when a child brought up as a girl learned that he was G
actually a boy, his school marks improved dramatically.
14 Amongst Indian agricultural workers, women are paid 40-60 per cent G
of the male wage.
15 Men can bottle-feed babies. G
16 Women can breastfeed babies S
17 Most building-site workers in Britain are men. G
18 In ancient Egypt, men stayed at home and did weaving. Women G
handled family business. Women inherited property and men did not.
19 Men’s voices break at puberty, women’s do not. S
20 In one study of 224 cultures, there were 5 in which men did all the G
cooking, and 36 in which women did all the house building.
21 According to UN statistics, women do 67 per cent of the world’s work, G
yet their earnings amount to only 10 per cent of the world’s income.
 Trainee’s Handout

INFORMATION SHEET
Sex and Gender

SEX refers to the natural distinguishing variable based on biological characteristics

of being a woman or a man. It refers to physical attributes pertaining to a person’s
body contours, features, genitals, hormones, genes, chromosomes and reproductive
organs.

GENDER refers to roles, attitudes and values assigned by culture and society to
women and men. These roles, attitudes and values define the behaviors of women
and men and the relationship between them.
Other variables, such as ethnicity, caste, class, age and ability intersect with gender
differences.

• Gender also refers to “subjective feelings of maleness or femaleness

(i.e., femininity or masculinity), irrespective of one’s sex “(Basow). This is
known as gender identity. It is possible to be genetically of one sex with a
gender identity of another sex, e.g., transsexuals identify themselves with the
gender of the opposite sex. This implies that one’s gender may not
necessarily be synonymous with that of one’s sex.

To compare and contrast, the table below summarizes the basic differences between
sex and gender:

SEX
• biological and physiological
determines
• what makes one male or female
• determined by chromosomes
• further defined by hormones
• difference in sex organs: men with
penis, women with vagina
• constant across time
• constant across different societies
and cultures
• the proper terms for describing
sex: male and female
GENDER
• social, cultural and psychological
connotations
• what makes one feminine or
masculine
• determined by society, defined by
culture
• changes across time
• changes across places and
cultures, thus, can be changed
• the proper terms for describing
gender: masculine and feminine

One’s gender can be determined in many ways, e.g., behavior. In most societies, for
example, humility, submissiveness, etc. are considered feminine behavior and
women are expected to behave that way. Men, on the other hand, are expected to
be dominant, aggressive, etc.

Feminine Masculine
submissive dominant
gentle aggressive
 emotional not emotional
quiet talkative

Other determinants of gender may include dress, gestures, occupation, social

network, and especially the ROLES played by the sexes in society.

1. Therefore, sex tells us that men and women are different. On the other hand,
gender roles are NOT inborn, rather, learned in the early stages of childhood.
2. Gender roles are learned through a process called gender role socialization.
This is the process of learning and internalizing culturally approved ways of
thinking, feeling, and behaving according to one’s gender.
3. In society, there are three aspects associated with gender roles, these are:

a. POSITIONS within the social structure indicating where women and men
are expected to belong. For example, society believes that the women’s
world is in the home, and the primary role is to take care of the family.
Whatever role they play outside their domestic functions is merely an
extension of this main role, such as teaching, nursing, and budgeting.
Men, on the other hand, are expected to engage in the public world of
work and politics;
b. RULES for BEHAVIOR and INTERACTION prescribed for men and
women. Women are expected to be sweet, refined and smooth in her
ways while men are expected to be strong, forward and aggressive.
c. RELATIONSHIPS between women’s and men’s roles.