COLEGIO DE STA. ANA DE VICTORIAS, INC.

Osmeña Avenue, Victorias City, Negros Occidental, 6119

ELEC 111 – GENDER AND SOCIETY

PRELIM – MODULE 1
BS CRIM 1B – MW 4:15 – 5:15
BS CRIM 1C – SATURDAY 3:00 – 6:00

Prepared by:

MRS. ELLEN LEDESMA EFONDO, R.N

ellen.efondo@csav.edu.ph

FB: Catherine Ellerey Laureen Joanne

CP #: 0950-648-8136

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 COLEGIO DE STA. ANA DE VICTORIAS, INC.
Osmeña Avenue, Victorias City, Negros Occidental, 6119

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 COLEGIO DE STA. ANA DE VICTORIAS, INC.
Osmeña Avenue, Victorias City, Negros Occidental, 6119

MODULE 1

ELEC 111 – GENDER AND SOCIETY

This module is a course that surveys various methodological, theoretical and practical orientations in gender and
sexuality. Using the human ecological lens, it approaches gender and sexuality from a transdisciplinary stance and
allows learners to understand social realities using multiple disciplinal perspectives, e.g biomedical, political-legal, and
psychological – sociocultural .Most essentially, it equips learners with competencies required in investigating and
analyzing cross cutting issues in gender and society.

This course will also answer the following questions: (1) How does your sex, gender or sexual identity shape the
way you learn, love, work, thrive and suffer? (2) What is sex? (3) What is gender? (4) What is deeply social about an
individual’s sexuality? (5) How do our social relationships govern our gender identity and sexual practice? Lastly, we will
discuss the sociological experience of sex, sexuality and gender.

At the end of this course, you are expected to:

1. Differentiate sex, gender and sexuality.

2. Understand the basis for physiologic processes in female and males.
3. Reflect upon one’s responsibility in ensuring psychosocial wellness in the aspect of gender and development.
4. Understand the definition of gender-based violence, other related terms and its forms and consequences.
5. Comprehend salient policies on gender equality in the labor market.

COURSE OUTLINE

Module 1 GENDER AND SEXUALITY AS A SOCIAL REALITY

Module 2 BIOMEDICAL PERSPECTIVES IN GENDER AND SEXUALITY

Module 3 PSYCHOSOCIAL PERSPECTIVE IN GENDER

Module 4 AND SEXUALTIY

Module 5 POLITICAL – LEGAL PERSPECTIVE IN

Module 6 GENDER AND SEXUALITY

Module 7 SOME CROSS-CUTTING ISSUES IN GENDER AND SOCIETY

This self- instructional module will provide you the knowledge about this course. You are also expected to
contribute to your own learning of these topics. If you are an online user, the contents of the lessons will be discussed
interactively in the Google Classroom. You will meet your instructors during your assigned schedules using the internet.
Offline learners will be given free modules but can be collected only by the parents or authorized representatives in
designated delivery areas. Activities or tests will be submitted in the same delivery area every 2 weeks for checking
which will be a part of your formative assessment.

Read thoroughly the concepts and ideas that are presented and analyze the questions or problems presented.
You will be guided by the activities and Self-check questions (SCQ) in assessing how far you have progressed or
improved. If you need more clarifications about the contents of the modules feel free to consult me, MRS. ELLEN L.
EFONDO, your instructor through text at cellphone number (0950-648-8136), gmail (ellen.efondo@csav.edu.ph),
messenger (Catherine Ellerey Laureen Joanne) etc.

PLEASE DETACH YOUR TEST/ QUIZZES OR ACTIVITY SHEETS. YOUR ANSWERS SHOULD BE WRITTEN
ON THE SAME SHEET TO BE SUBMITTED TO YOUR INSTRUCTOR ON OR BEFORE THE DEADLINE.

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 COLEGIO DE STA. ANA DE VICTORIAS, INC.
Osmeña Avenue, Victorias City, Negros Occidental, 6119

LEARNING MODULE 1
Sex, Gender and Sexuality
INTRODUCTION What does it mean to be a male or female, to be feminine or masculine, or to be a man or
woman? The human mind and body are so complex such that to answer this question, we have to
trace our journey from the moment we were born and go back to the journey we human have
across the life span.

First thing you need to understand is the complexities of defining and differentiating sex, gender
and sexuality. Having a clear grasp of these concepts is crucial since we will be using these terms
over and over again in succeeding discussions. Likewise, there are nuances in the meanings of
these terms which have an implication on at which context we can appropriately use them.

Moreover, as we start our discussion of gender and sexuality as social realities, we also want to
understand how a person’s gender is expressed from birth to adulthood. Our ultimate goal is to
foster understanding of the diversity of how humans experience and express their sexuality.
LEARNING At the end of the module, you should be able to:

OBJECTIVES a. Differentiate sex, gender and sexuality.

b. Discuss the implication of these differences
c. Contemplate about your own sexuality and on the importance of appreciating sexual diversity.

LEARNING Peralta, E.P., Botor,N.J., Pawilen, G.T., and Laude, T.M. (2019). Gender and Society: A Human Ecological
RESOURCES Approach. Rex Bookstrore, Inc., Manila.

LEARNING What is sex?

- Refers to biological characteristics (including genetics, anatomy and physiology) that
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generally define humans as female or male.
- It is also referred to as biological sex or physical sex.

How is sex identified?

- Sex is often assigned at birth or by merely examining the genitals. If at birth a child is
observed to have a penis and testicles, then the child is categorized as male. If a child is
observed to have a vagina, then the child is categorized as female.
- Chromosomes (protein structures which contain your genetic materials) are also used to
determine sex. There are specific chromosomes referred to as sex chromosomes, which
marks a person’s biological sex. An individual with a set of XY sex chromosomes is said
to be a male, while individual with a set of XX sex chromosomes is said to be female.
- Level of some hormones (chemicals in our body that are responsible for sustaining bodily
processes) are also used as markers. Example, human males tend to have higher levels
of testosterone, which is associated to sex drive and aggressions. On the other hand,
human females tend to have higher levels of estrogen and progesterone, which are
associated to lactation, menstruation and other female reproductive functions.

What is gender?
- Refers to the socially constructed characteristics of women and men, such as norms,
roles and relationships of and between groups of women and men. It varies from society
to society and can be changed.
- Refers to individual’s and society’s interpretation of sex; masculinity for male, femininity
for female.

How is gender being expressed?

- Gender is being expressed largely based on our social and cultural setting.

Example for social setting:

- As soon as a new baby arrives in the family, adults surrounding the baby manifests their
social interpretation of the baby’s sex by the colors assigned to the baby.
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Osmeña Avenue, Victorias City, Negros Occidental, 6119

Blue for baby boy because blue is said to be associated with boyhood and Pink for baby
girl because the color is associated with girlhood.

Example for cultural setting:

- In Filipino culture, girls are expected to have certain characteristics of being gentle,
caring and loving while boys are encouraged to be strong, rough and assertive.
- These expectations also extend to how men and women are expected to behave, the
college courses they take and the jobs they apply to.

However, there are people who do not follow culturally-accepted standards of masculinity and
femininity like girls not wanting to wear dresses and boys not wanting to play rough sports. This is
a natural variation of the human gender expression. Social and cultural practices change through
time. Just 60 years ago, women could not wear pants without social disapproval and now wearing
a pants is already an accepted fashion trend among people of different genders.

Sex Gender
- Biological characteristics - Individuals and Society’s perception
Genitalia: of sex
Male (penis) Society:
Female (vagina) Male (Masculine)
Hormones: Female (Feminine)
Male (testosterone) Color Assignment:
Female (estrogen and progesterone) Male (Blue)
Chromosomes: Female (Pink)
Male (XY sex chromosomes) Culture
Female (XX sex chromosomes) Male (Strong)
Female (Caring)
- Natural - Learned
- Cannot be changed, except with the - Although deeply rooted, gender roles
medical treatment can be changed over time, since
social values and norms are not static

What is Gender Identity?

- It is one important aspect of our gender.
- It is how we see our self or the sense of who we are. (Do we see and experience
ourselves as a man, a woman, or neither?)

Typically, males are comfortable identifying themselves as a man, and female as a woman.
However, there are cases wherein a person’s biological sex does not align with one’s gender
identity. People with this experience are referred to as transgenders, such as a male who does
not feel comfortable identifying as a man (transgender woman) or a female who is not
comfortable identifying as a woman (transgender man). These people undergo gender
reassignment surgery to align their physical characteristics to their gender identity.

Sexual Orientation

- Another aspect of our gender pertains to our emotional and sexual attraction to a person.
This refers to our sexual orientation. According to the Psychological Association of the
Philippines, typically at ages 6 or 8 we experience or develop attraction to other people. By
adolescence, we already know who we are attracted to and would experiment through the dating
and relationships.
- Everyone’s sexuality is different and deeply personal. Our capacity for emotional and
sexual attraction is diverse and complex, but there a few common terms or labels for us
to use.

1. Heterosexuals or straight – people who are attracted to the opposite sex

2. Homosexuals, gay or lesbian – people who are attracted to people of the same sex
3. Bisexual or bi – people who are attracted to both sexes, male or female
4. LGBT refers to the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community.

Appreciating diversity

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According to the American Psychological Association, nature and nurture play a complex
role in shaping our sexual orientation. Homosexuality and heterosexuality are part of the human
sexuality and is a large part of the human experience.
Identifying as heterosexual, lesbian, gay, bi, or transgender is a deeply personal process
so it may be more difficult for others to “come out” or for them to become comfortable enough with
their sexuality that they feel safe to share it with other people. For others it comes early in
adolescence while for some it may take time to understand and discover themselves.
According the Psychological Association of the Philippines “we can only truly tell if the
person is gay, lesbian or bisexual if the person shares with us his or her experiences and feelings
of attraction towards them”. That is why it is important for everyone to feel safe as they share their
sexuality since it is a personal and sensitive topic. We can do that in an environment wherein we
do not feel judged and discriminated upon. People who experience prejudice and discrimination
suffer negative psychological effects so we must work towards an inclusive environment where
everyone feels safe.

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