Unit Overview

This resource is slated for revision in 2026, budget permitting. It remains on our website because there are many valuable teaching ideas which can be adapted for deeper inclusivity. Please use your professional judgment and consider prefacing this unit with a mini-lesson on on gender inclusivity, which could include:

  • a discussion of gender identity terms such as cisgender, transgender, and non-binary identities
  • a discussion of the distinctions between sex, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, and gender expression
  • norm-setting around gendered language and pronoun usage
  • the importance of resisting generalizations about people because of their gender, and recognizing that some people do not identify with the gender they were assigned at birth

For more resources, see The Genderbread Person, The Safe Zone Project, Egale Canada, Creating a Gender-Inclusive Classroom and more in the CODE Addressing Oppressions Resource.

Please share any suggestions, recommendations, or ways that you have adapted this resource with us using the Feedback button for consideration in the updated version.

 

Context:

According to a Statistics Canada labour report from the summer of 2009, more women than men were employed in Canada, making it the first nation to cross that important threshold. In this unit, students will explore the implications of these statistics and the impact of work on women and men in society. The unit will challenge students to move beyond stereotypical views of women and and develop a meaningful awareness of and sensitivity towards each other as they move into the world of work. This unit should be introduced well after a drama community has been established, where the students are respectful, accepting, and supportive of one another.  It is also important that students have developed some performance skills and are able to take creative risks.

Summary:  

In this unit students will use a variety of dramatic forms and conventions, including tableau, hot seating, role play and scene creation, to explore and depict the struggles of women in the workplace. Students will learn the history of women in the workplace and interview real life people in order to gain a historical perspective on the issue. By the end of this unit, students should recognize and understand the challenges and struggles women have faced, and continue to face, in both the social and work worlds.

 
 
 
 
 
 

Expectations

A1. The Creative Process: use the creative process and a variety of sources and forms, both individually and collaboratively, to design and develop drama works;

A2. Elements and Conventions: use the elements and conventions of drama effectively in creating individual and ensemble works, including works based on a variety of global sources
 

B.1 Critical Analysis Process: use the critical analysis process to reflect on and evaluate their own and others’ drama works;

B2. Drama and Society: demonstrate an understanding of how societies present and past use or have used drama, and of how creating and viewing drama can benefit individuals, groups, and communities;

B3.Continuing Engagement: identify knowledge and skills they have acquired through drama activities, and ways in which they can apply this learning in personal, social, and career contexts.
C.1 Concepts and Terminology: demonstrate an understanding of the nature and functions of drama forms, elements, conventions, and techniques, including the correct terminology for the various components;
C2.Contexts and Influences: demonstrate an understanding of the origins and development of drama and theatre arts and their influence on past and present societies
 

Unit Guiding Questions

What are my views about gender roles both in the workplace and society?
How do prescribed gender roles affect my choices in life and work?
Are men and women different in terms of their abilities?
What struggles have women faced, and continue to face, both in the world of work and society at large?
Are there differences in the way men and women think and communicate?
Do the differences between men and women, coupled with (un)intentional stereotyping, impact our view of what women can achieve?
How can men and women work together without conflict?
 

Lesson Guiding Questions 

Lesson 1-
How do we perceive women? What is their role in society?
How do social perceptions affect how women are treated at work?

Lesson 2 -
How and when did the view of "women's work" start to change? How did that impact the world of work?

Lesson 3 - 
What can we learn from the experiences and views of our grandparents' generation about the role of women in work? How can we represent that in dramatic work?

Lesson 4 -
What are some of the myths and stereotypes that persist about gender roles in the workplace? How can various drama forms serve to debunk these views?

Lesson 5 -
Do differences, perceived or real, between men and women impact their ability to work with one another?
How can miscommunication and conflict in general be avoided in the workplace?

 

Assessment and Evaluation: How will students demonstrate their learning?

Assessment of learning

Culminating Performance Activity

1. Students will be create a forum theatre scenario depicting a conflict in the workplace based on gender issues. Students will be evaluated using a checklist and a rubric, self evaluation, and a reflection paper.

Assessment for Learning

Check Point #1/Lesson 1

Students demonstrate an awareness of issues under discussion through a written reflection.
 

Check Point #2/Lesson 2

Students generate and employ evaluation criteria of their work.
 

Check Point #3/Lesson 3

Students conference with teacher and peers and receive feedback.
 

Check Point #4/Lesson 4

Students are critiqued by peers.
 

 

Unit Lessons: How will assessment and instruction be organized for learning?

Approx. Duration 1 class="75" minutes

Lesson 1

Men versus Women

Students will consider in a conscientious way how society defines and categorizes gender based on ascribed qualities, and how these views have defined, and continue to define, what is considered traditional female and male work. Students will consider inherent abilities and qualities men and women possess, then examine and articulate their own views regarding women and work.

1 class

Lesson 2

"We Can Do It" Deconstructing Work Stereotypes

Students will examine the great strides women made a century ago in the evolution towards work place and societal equality. Through role play and scene development students will demonstrate what women went through as they redefined their role in society.

2 classes

Lesson 3

Focus on Personal Stories

Students watch the documentary "Rosies of the North" to learn interview and questioning techniques to elicit stories about women's historical position in the workplace.  Students prepare for their interviews by creating a list of questions with the class and practicing with the teacher's personal story. 

1-2 classes

Lesson 4

Bringing Personal Stories to Life

Students will collect and recreate personal stories about women's roles and experiences in the world of work in the past. They will attempt to recreate these stories in a sensitive and respectful manner through characterization and docudrama techniques.

1-2 classes

Lesson 5

Working Together

Students will create an instructional, interactive presentation for an audience of Grade 10 Careers students about working effectively with members of the opposite sex, illustrating common problems that could arise between genders in today's workplace. Through the use of statistics, expert information and the experiences and understanding generated in early lessons, students create scenes illustrating a conflict or problem. Using suggestion from the audience, the students then recreate an idealized version of the scene.

4 classes