Module Template

Module No. & Title I. Gender and Sexuality as a Social Reality

Module Overview
Hello student, WELCOME to the Modular Learning! In this
module we will talk about the differences between sex and gender, as well
as issues like gender identity and sexuality. In contemporary society, what
does it mean to “have” a gender? What exactly does it mean to "have"
sexuality? This module will first define sex and gender and explore the
connections between the two. This exploration will include a discussion of
how gender is manifested in contemporary Philippine society, how it is
commonly explained, and how it is explained by more contemporary
social theory. It will attempt to trace the development of gender to its
present Philippine context. Good luck as you begin MODULE 1. Happy
Learning!

Module • Discuss the context of sex, sexuality, and gender following the
Objectives/Outcomes Philippine social norms.
• Contemplate about your own sexuality and on the importance of
appreciating sexual diversity.
• Discuss the historical roots of our understanding of gender and
sexuality.
• Show appreciation of how this understanding evolved through time,
affected various aspect of human life.
• Define gender studies and its historical origins.
• Explain its importance in society.
Lessons in the module • Lesson 1 : Sex, Gender, and Sexuality
• Lesson 2 : Gender and Sexuality Across Time

Module No. and Title I. Gender and Sexuality as a Social Reality

Lesson No. and Title Lesson 1 : Sex, Gender, and Sexuality

LO1. Discuss the context of sex, sexuality, and gender following the
Philippine social norms.
Learning Outcomes
LO2. Contemplate about your own sexuality and on the importance of
appreciating sexual diversity.
Time Frame 1 week
Introduction
Welcome to LESSON 1! What does it mean to be a male or a female, to
be feminine or masculine, or to be 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
humans have across the life span.
First thing you need to understand is the complexities of defining
and differentiating gender, and sexuality. As we start our discussion of
gender and sexuality as social realities, we also want you to understand how
a person's gender is expressed from birth to adulthood. Your ultimate goal
is to foster understanding of the diversity of how humans experience and
express their sexuality. Good luck as you begin Lesson 1. Happy Learning!
Abstraction

SEX
Sex is the biological dimension of your gender and sexuality. Also referred to as biological sex or physical sex, the
term generally pertains to your identity depending on your sexual anatomy and physiology-the parts of your body
that are relevant to reproduction and the function of these parts. Sex is typically determined by examining your
genitals these are external organs that are associated with reproduction-the process or the ability to create offspring.
Among humans, sex is often assigned at birth. If at birth, a child is observed to have a penis and testicles, then the
child is categorized as male. If on the other hand, a child is observed to have a vagina, then the child is categorized as
female. However, there are cases when the baby's genitals appear to be a conglomerate of male and female organs
such that it may be difficult to classify the baby's sex without further examination. In the past, this condition is
referred to as hermaphroditism (from Hermes, a male Greek god, and Aphrodite, a female Greek goddess). In modern
times, the term intersexuality is used to refer to this phenomenon. Hermaphroditism or intersexuality is a naturally
occurring variation in humans and animals (1 in 1,50o births) according to the American Psychological Association
(APA) (2006).
Since it may be difficult to distinguish biological sex by merely examining the genitals, there are other biological
markers used. For instance, your 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 an individual with a set of XX sex
chromosomes is said to be a female. The level of some hormones chemicals in our body that are responsible for
sustaining bodily processes-are also used as markers. For 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.
GENDER
However, humans are meaning-making organisms. Our ability for higher order thinking and Or tendency to
create social norms, allow us to attach social and cultural meanings to things, including our sex. For example, males
are typically expected be masculine and females are expected to be feminine. Once parents are aware of their child's
sex (male or female) during birth or through prenatal procedures such as ultrasound, they automatically attach social
and cultural meanings to their child's sex and in doing so, they already set an expectation in terms of how their child
should behave and how they should treat their child. This social dimension of one's sexuality is referred to as gender.
There are many ways through which gender is manifested. 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. For
example, it is common for families to buy blue apparels and toys when the baby is a male, as the color blue is
associated with girlhood. Conversely, female babies are often assigned the color pink, such that families would buy
clothes and toys that are color pink because the color is associated with girlhood. Remarkably, the moment a baby is
born, the name, toys, and apparels are picked by parents and relatives based on their interpretation of the baby's sex.
Throughout childhood and adolescence, this assignment becomes more complex as the expectations go beyond
the kind of clothes worn, but also in terms of how the person must or must not behave. There are set of behaviors
that all female individuals must follow and so with the male individuals, and all are expected to stick to these
behaviors that are aligned with their biological sex. This phenomenon of determining the normality of a behavior
based on whether it conforms or not to the expectations relative to one's biological sex is referred to as
heteronormativity. In the 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 wearing8 pants is already an accepted fashion trend among people of different
genders.
How we express our gender is largely based on our social and cultural setting. Most are comfortable with their
sex and gender; men who are masculine and women who are feminine. Each culture also has different standards on
how to be a man and a woman and how they should present themselves according to their sex and gender.
GENDER IDENTITY
One important aspect of our gender is our sense of who we are: Do we see and experience ourselves as a man,
a woman, or neither. This refers to our gender identity. Typically, males are comfortable identifying as a man and
females are comfortable identifying 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).
Transgender people may undergo gender reassignment surgery to align their physical characteristics to their
gender identity. However, due to many factors such as belief systems, culture, and economics, some do not opt for
surgery.

SEXUAL ORIENTATION
Another aspect of our gender pertains to our emotional and sexual attraction to a person. This aspect 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 dating and relationships.
Everyone's sexuality is different and deeply personal. Our capacity for emotional and sexual attraction is diverse and
complex, but there are a few common terms or labels for us to use.

• People who are attracted to the opposite sex are called 'heterosexuals' or "straight."

• People who are attracted to people of the same sex are called "homosexual," gay or "lesbian."

• "Bisexual" or "bi" people are attracted to both sexes, male or female.

• LGBT refers to the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender community.

•
APPRECIATING DIVERSITY
According to the American Psychological Association (APA), 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 a heterosexual, lesbian, bi, gay, 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 (APA), so we must work towards an inclusive
environment where everyone feels safe.
Module No. and Title I. Gender and Sexuality as a Social Reality

Lesson No. and Title Lesson 2 : Gender and Sexuality Across Time
Learning Outcomes
LO3.Discuss the historical roots of our understanding of gender and sexuality.
LO4.Show appreciation of how this understanding evolved through time,
affected various aspect of human life.

Time Frame 1 week

Introduction
Welcome to LESSON 2! This lesson tackles movements in history which
shows how men, women, and people of other genders are viewed in human
societies. Society has progressed so much in a way that information and
knowledge is available to everyone. This gives us an opportunity to examine our
social and political conditions in more detail than when information was scarce
and limited to only a few individuals.
For the longest time thereafter, societies have privileged men over other
genders, mainly because of the preferential given to them in the productive
sphere (world of public work).Women who have been revered due to their
ability to conceive have been viewed as solely capable only of reproductive
affairs (world of the home and related tasks such as suckling the young, child
rearing, and home management). The gender disparity was intensified by the
Industrial era where factors were built and men were preferred because they did
not have to bear children for nine months and because of their perceived
physical strength. But how did really the conceptualization of gender and
sexuality changed?
Good luck as you begin Lesson 2. Happy Learning!
 (Cut and pass)

Name : ______________________________________________ Year & Course: __________ Date of

Submission:______________

Analysis

1. How does your society or culture teach you to think, feel, and act based on your gender? How is it limiting?
How is it liberating?
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Abstraction
PATRIARCHY
A close examination of our society can lead us to see the invisible layers of oppression in our society like patriarchy-a
system based on the control and oppression of women wherein they are perceived to be the weaker sex. It is a structure
that upholds male supremacy in the law, at home, in the work place, and in society.
Patriarchy is from the Greek word Patriarkhes which means "the rule of the father". It is a social system where men
primarily holds power in the political and the private spheres. This means that in this social system, society is organized and
maintained in a way that men rule over women and their children. In the social, legal, political, and economic spheres, men
are expected to lead while women are expected to obey and are relegated to house chores, bearing children, and child care.
A patrilineal society often follows a patriarchal society, this means only men can inherit property and the family name.
Women were left with no inheritance and are expected to marry a man who can support her economically. In fact, women
were not allowed to go to schools, or even vote, because they are viewed as a weaker sex and should not concern
themselves in learning science or politics. Women had to fight for the right to vote, to go to school, to go to work, and even
participate in politics.
Patriarchy is viewed by most sociologists as a social construct and not as a biological phenomenon. This is because
history proves that in the prehistoric hunter-gatherer tribes and civilization, they prioritized equality of all members, male
and female. History suggests an egalitarian system rather than a patriarchal system. Men and women contribute to society,
and they enjoy the same social status.
Friedrich Engels, a German philosopher and sociologist, argues that patriarchy came about when people started having
private property instead of a communal living. The development in agriculture and domestication of animals led to creating
product surplus which allows people to have private property. As a way to control the excess wealth generated by these
advancements, male dominance was asserted over women so only the male heir can inherit family wealth.
HISTORICAL VIEWS ON GENDER
Greek
Aristotle, Plato, and other Greek philosophers viewed women as the inferior sex and are properties of men whose only
job was to obey their husbands, bear children, and take care of the household. They were forbidden to learn philosophy,
politics, and science.
Egypt
Herodotus, a Greek historian, observed the Egyptian civilization citing that Egyptian women enjoyed higher social status
than Greek women because they can inherit property and engage in trade and politics. However, Greek influence quickly
spread in Egypt through the conquests of Alexander the Great across Asia and Africa.
China
Confucianism has stringent written rules that dictate how women should conduct themselves. The written documents
titled "Three obedience's and four virtues" and "Precepts of women" states that women should obey their father, when
married she is to obey her husband, and when widowed she is to obey her son.
Gendered biases in ancient patriarchal societies were very strict, heavily enforced, and often violent. Imagine not being
able to go to school just because you are a woman, not being able to express your opinion on important matters even
when it concerns your future, and not being able to say no to any man.
Women have come a long way since the ancient times through the feminist movement, however, patriarchy has taken on
subtle forms of oppression that often go unnoticed such as:
• sexism- prejudice, stereotypes, and discrimination based on sex:  gender pay gap
men earn more that women;
• underrepresentation in politics, military, executive positions, etc; rape on women and the stigma making women
ashamed to report the crime;  very conservative expectations on women on how they behave:
• unrealistic depictions of women in fiction, often very sexualized:
• women do more housework and childcare;
• boys were trained to be leaders while women were trained to do house chores.
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Women's liberation movement, women's movement, or feminism is a continuing series of social movements that aim to
challenge the patriarchal society that creates these oppressive political structures, beliefs, and practices against women. It
started at different decades in different countries, some are far more advance in their struggle while others are still starting
a movement. During the 19th and early 20th century, first-wave feminism spread across the western countries as women
demanded for their right to vote or participate in elections and to be able to legally own property
In France, Simone de Beauvoir wrote book titled "The Second Sex" in 1949. It outlined how the patriarchal society
disadvantaged women by slowly raising her into submission and hindering their productivity and happiness by relegating
them to housecleaning. This inspired many women to write and speak their truths, such as Betty Friedan (The Feminine
Mystique, 2963), Kate Millet (Sexual Politics, 1969), and Germaine Greer (The Female Eunuch, 1970). Beauvoir's book was
instrumental in awakening women about their plight as the "wife-servant" to their husbands in her famous quote "one is
not born, but rather becomes, a woman.
Le Mouvement de Liberation des Femmes or the women's liberation movement was formed in Europe and they
sought the right to education, right to work, and right to vote in the 1940s. Later, they also won women's right to decide on
their own bodies and their sexualities. This liberation movement views the intersectionality of economic status or class to
patriarchy.
Inspired by Beauvoir's book, second-wave feminism in 1960's through the 80's, women drew attention to various social
and cultural inequalities such as domestic violence especially marital rape, reproductive rights, wage inequality, and etc. The
90's gave birth to the 3rd wave 2012 started the forth wave. These movements only show that there is still much to be done
for women is rights.
 The United Nations reports that women do more work than men because even when they work at the office, they are
still expected to do household tasks. Another report from UN Women states that "women perform 66 percent of the world’s
work, produce 50 percent of the food, but earn 10 of the income and own I percent of the property. This is because in
agricultural countries, women participate in making the produce, but only the father or the male head of the family controls
the income. To put simply, feminism demands equality. Here are a few salient points that feminism demands.

• Women suffrage -women were not allowed to vote before because they were viewed as irrational and temperamental
and therefore, not able to make rational decisions. This changed after World War I (1914 to 1918) wherein women were
uprooted from the household. They took on jobs and made significant contributions to their country. Many countries
soon started letting women vote since they can no longer argue that women are "irrational and temperamental".

• Equality in politics and society- for hundreds of years, women's voices were silenced, so society must make an effort
to restore their rights. Representation is very important for women, so that their genuine concerns are heard in politics
and in society. Feminist have always criticized that old, privileged men always make the decisions for women at home
and in politics.

• Reproductive rights means the woman is in control of her body, and she can decide for herself on what she sees is
best for her. Contraception, abortion, and other reproductive options should be available to women because it is their
body.

• Domestic violence - such as marital rape and physical abuse are often dismissed by society as part of a "marriage”.
Although we have RA 9262 or Anti Violence Against Women and their Children, our culture still dismiss such incidents
as "away mag-asawa”.

• Sexual harassment and sexual violence - The Center tor Women's Resources in the Philippines estimates that one
woman or child is raped every hour mostly by someone they know.

• Other rights include the right to divorce their husbands, the right to make decisions on her pregnancy, equitable wages,
and equal employment opportunity.

• Now let’s move to Lesson 3.

Module No. and Title I. Gender and Sexuality as a Social Reality

Lesson No. and Title Lesson 3 : Gender and Sexuality as a Subject of Inquiry
Learning Outcomes LO5. Define gender studies and its historical origins. LO6.
Explain its importance in society.
Time Frame 1 week
Introduction
Welcome to LESSON 3! Gender seems so obvious and so simple, many

would ask why we have to study it. Well, in this lesson we will study the gender

studies as an area of knowledge, is about looking into, analyzing, and examining

society so that we notice power relations in the seemingly 'simple things. It helps

us see the issues in our everyday lives through a different lens.

The goal of this lesson is to define and appreciate gender studies. Gender

is a big part of our individuality and society; it is a form of social organization,

and it is often unnoticed. In different cultures and different times in our history,

gender roles played a big part of social organization.

Abstraction

Gender role or sex role are "sets of culturally defined behaviors such as masculinity and femininity"
Gender studies emerged from the need to analyze how gender, sex, and sexuality
according to the Encyclopedia of Sex and Gender (2019). These roles are not fixed such that the "culturally defined
behaviors" for men and women mayimpact
be veryour lives, especially
different how
50 years ago or it creates
very gender
different inequality.
for people from other countries
Good luck as you begin Lesson 3. Happy Learning!
Analysis

1. What should girls or boys be or do?Complete the the following statements to answer the questin:
I think girls are _______________________________________________________________________________________________
I thinks boys are _____________________________________________________________________________________________
I think girls should ___________________________________________________________________________________________
I think boys should __________________________________________________________________________________________
Society thinks that girls should ______________________________________________________________________________
Society thinks that boys should ______________________________________________________________________________

2. What is expected of girls and boys (1) in your school; (2) in your household; and (3) in your church?
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

or tribe. In a binary system of viewing gender roles, we only see the male and the female where men are expected to
be masculine while women are expected to be feminine. This is the norm or the accepted standards of how to behave
like a woman (mahinhin) or how to behave like a man (matipuno/ matapang). In gender studies, we are asked to
disciplines-psychology, sociology, medicine, and law-among others. This b0ok will provide you with
sufficient theoretical and practical perspectives, so you can understand gender and sexuality.

Main Differences Between Sex and Gender

SEX GENDER
 Physiological  Social
 Related to reproduction  Cultural
 Congenital*  Learned behavior
 Unchanging*  Changes over time
 Varies within a culture / among cultures

*Due to advances in science and other societal trends, one can now legally and physically change his or
her gender.
References
Peralta, Eric Paul, Botor, Nephtaly Joel B, & Laude, Teri Marie P. (2019). A Course Module for Gender and
Society: A Human Ecological Approach.
Messer-Davindow, E. (2002). Disciplining feminism: from social activism to academic discourse. Durham,
North Carolina: Duke University press.
American Psychological Association. (2010). Ethical principles of psychologists and code of conduct (with
the 2010 amendments). Retrieved from http://www.apa.org/ethics/code/ principles.pdf

"Gender Roles." Encyclopedia of Sex and Gender: Culture Society History. Retrieved February 10, 2019
from Encyclopedia.com https://www.encyclopedia.com/social- sciences/encyclopedias-
almanacstranscripts-and-maps/gender-roles