SPL (VII)- LESSON- 4 GROWING UP AS BOYS AND GIRLS (QUESTION ANSWERS)

                                                     SPL (VII)- LESSON- 4

GROWING UP AS BOYS AND GIRLS

(QUESTION ANSWERS)

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NCERT EXERCISE

1. Are the statements given alongside true or false? Support your answer with the use of an example –

(a) All societies do not think similarly about the roles that boys and girls play

(b) Our society does not make a distinction between boys and girls when they are growing up.

(c) Women who stay at home do not work

(d) The work that women do is less valued than that of men

Answer (a) True. More importance is given to the work done by boys instead of the ones done by girls.

(b) False. Right from the outset of their growing phase, our society makes it a point to distinguish between boys and girls. From an early age, boys are taught to be tough and serious while girls are taught to be coy and soft. Toys like guns and cars are given for boys to play, while girls will be given dolls.

(c)False. A woman who stays at home does housework. A lot of it. They wash clothes, sweep, clean, cook food and pretty much keep the entire house in order.

(d) True. Despite the fact that women do a lot of work, their work goes undervalued. Part of the reason why is that because there is no monetary value attached to it, there is social conditioning that household work comes naturally to women and that it is expected of them.

2. Housework is invisible and unpaid work

  Housework is physically demanding

   Housework is time-consuming

Write in your own words what is meant by the terms ‘invisible’, ‘physically demanding’, and ‘time consuming’? Give one example of each based on the household tasks undertaken by women in your home.

Answer:

(i.) Invisible. It means the work does not happen in our immediate presence. The primary responsibility for housework and care-giving tasks such as taking care of children and the elderly lies with women. Due to the fact that they are not acknowledged as work, it remains invisible.

ii. Physically demanding. House work is very tough and difficult. Women do a lot of heavy-duty work like washing the clothes of the entire family, gathering and carrying heavy loads of firewood among others.

iii. Time-consuming. Household chores take up a lot of time. For example, women’s routine begins from early morning and continues up to late at night. During this period they are seen busy fulfilling the tasks of their family members. At times, the time consumed in finishing the chores depends on the size of the family. The larger the family, the longer it takes for completion.

3. Make a list of toys and games that boys typically play and another for girls. If there is a difference between the two lists, can you think of some reasons why this is so? Does this have any relationship to the roles children have to play as adults?

Answer: List of toys and games that boys play with: Cars, Guns, Action figures, Sports items like football, volleyball, cricket, basketball, etc.

List of toys and games girls play with: Dolls, Cooking items, Dollhouses, Fashion Toys

From the list we can say that society makes a distinction between boys and girls, from their growing phase itself. Boys are taught to be tough and strong, which highlights their manly features but girls are expected to remain in the confines of their feminine virtues. In the end, it pushes home the message that they have specific roles to play when they grow up into adult men and women. Later in life, this may even have adverse effects when it comes to choosing careers.

4. If you someone working as a domestic help in your house or locality talk to her and find out a little bit more about her life – Who are her family members? Where is her home? How many hours does she work? How much does she get paid? Write a small story based on these details.

Answer: Melani has been working in my house for several years as a domestic help. She hails from a village on the Karnataka – Tamil Nadu border. She lives here in Bangalore with her husband and a daughter in her early twenties, who is currently pursuing B.com from a reputed institute.

She comes at around 7.30 in the morning and gets done for the day by 6:00 in the evening. She does her work with diligence and skill, never even once making a fuss or complaining about the work she does.

She gets Rs.3000/- per month with all other amenities like food, clothing etc. Her husband is involved in making wax mannequins for clothing stores which also earns him a handsome amount every day. Thus, Shanthi is leading a happy and fruitful life with us and her family members.

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OTHER IMPORTANT QUESTIONS

 1. The roles of men and women are:
(a) equally valued
(b) not equally valued
(c) of same status
(d) none of these

 2. What was the most important activity on an Island of Samoa in 1920s?
(a) Fishing
(b) Farming
(c) Household work
(d) None of these

 3. At what age did the boy in Samoa join older boys for learning outdoor jobs?
(a) 5 years
(b) 9 years
(c) 11 years
(d) 13 years

 4. What did girls in Samoa learn after the age of fourteen years?
(a) How to weave baskets
(b) How to grow plantation
(c) Special cooking
(d) All of these

 5. From which class did the girls and boys go to separate school in M.P.?
(a) Class IV onwards
(b) Class VI onwards
(c) Class VII onwards
(d) Class XI onwards

6. What were girls given to play while the boys were given cars?
(a) Dolls
(b) Bus
(c) Trucks
(d) Trains

 

 7. Doing household work is work or not?
(a) Yes
(b) No
(c) Both A and B
(d) None of these

 

 8. Who has the main responsibility of housework across the world?
(a) Men
(b) Children
(c) Women
(d) Old people

 

9. Who was Melani?
(a) A domestic worker
(b) A factory worker
(c) A shopkeeper
(d) A teacher

 

10. Who can take steps, to bring gender equality?
(a) Constitution
(b) Society
(c) Both
(d) None

 

II. Fill in the blanks with appropriate words:

1. The child centres in villages are called …………….

2. Our constitution provides …………… of genders.

3. In Madhya Pradesh the ……………. schools were designed differently in the 1960s.

4. Most of the work done by women is ……………..

III. State whether the given statements are true or false.

1. House work does not require physical and emotional work.

2. Life of domestic worker is very difficult.

3. Government has passed laws that organisations with women workers must have creche facilities.

4. Domestic workers get high wages.

ANSWERS

I- MCQS

1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10
B	A	B	D	B	A	B	C	A	A

II-FILL IN THE BLANKS

1-Anganwadi, 2-Equality, 3-girls, 4-time consuming

III-TRUE/FALSE

1-FALSE, 2-TRUE, 3-TRUE, 4- FALSE

 

 

1. Why is the work of men and women not valued equally?
Answer: In most societies the work of men and women is valued differently.

1. Men work outside the house.

2. Women do all the household chores like cleaning, washing, cooking, care giving etc.

3. These works are not considered real works and are not recognized as work.

4. It is assumed that these come naturally to women. These do not have to be paid for.

2.  Describe the lives of domestic workers as given in the chapter.
Answer: In the given chapter, Harmeet’s mother was not the only one who did the housework.

A lot of the work was done by Mangala, their domestic help.

Many homes, particularly in towns and cities, employ domestic workers.

They do a lot of work—sweeping and cleaning, washing clothes and dishes, cooking, looking after young children or the elderly.

Most domestic workers are women.

Sometimes even young boys or girls are employed to do this work.

Wages are low, as domestic work does not have much value.

A domestic worker’s day begins as early as five in the morning and ends as late as twelve at night.

Despite the hard work they do, their employers often do not pay them enough on show them much respect.

3. Briefly write about life of domestic worker Melani?
Answer: Melani worked in Delhi as a domestic worker for a rich family. She had to do all the work along with two other girls.

   1. They got up at 5 o’clock and got a cup of tea with two dry chapattis as breakfast.

   2. They cleaned the house and did all other work.

   3. In evening Melani cooked food. She secretly cooked extra rotis for herself and other two girls.

    4. They could not wear chappals in the house even in winters.

4. What does housework involve?
Answer: The housework actually involves many different tasks.
A number of these tasks require heavy physical work:

In both Rural and Urban areas women and girls fetch water.

In rural areas women and girls carry heavy headloads of firewood.

Tasks like washing clothes, cleaning, sweeping and picking up loads require bending, lifting and carrying.

Many chores like cooking, involve standing for long hours in front of hot stoves.

The women’s work is strenuous and physically demanding, words associated with men.

5. Explain another aspect of housework.
Answer: Another aspect of housework is ‘care giving”.

This aspect is related to looking after the children and nurturing them.

Taking care of the elderly or ill people in the home.

All this requires strong emotional aspect along with physical labour.

In fact if we add up the work (housework) and care giving time women work much more than men.

6. What do you understand by the term “double burden”?
Answer: In today’s world many women work inside as well as outside the home. This is referred to as “double burden”.

7. Why we see low value attached to women’s work?
Answer: Low value attached to household or care giving work is not a family matter. It is due to the inequality between the genders existing in the society. It should be dealt by individuals, society as well by the government.

8. What does our Constitution say about discrimination?
Answer: Our Constitution says that there should be no discrimination on the basis of gender (male or female).

    1.    In reality inequality between the sexes exists.

     2.    The government recognises that burden of childcare and housework falls on women and girls.

     3.    This naturally has an impact on the girls attending the school.

     4.    It determines whether women work outside the house and their jobs and careers.

     5.    Government has set up anganwadis or child care centres in villages.

     6.    The government has passed laws that make it mandatory for organisations that have more than 30 women employees to provide creche facilities.

     7.    The provision of Creches helps many women to take up employment outside the home.

      8.      It also makes it possible for more girls to attend schools.