Cultural Backgrounds And Community Attitudes Prevent Girls From Attending Schools And Thereby Act

According to Hinduism the female was created by Brahman as part of the duality in creation, to provide company to men and facilitate procreation, progeny and continuation of family linage. The Vedas suggest that a woman’s primary duty is to help her husband in performing obligatory duties and enable him to continue his family tradition. Her primary duty is to give birth to his children and take care of them. Hinduism is a predominantly male dominated religion. Woman play a secondary role. The situation is gradually changing. It is difficult to draw generalizations about the status of present day Hindu women because of society is complex. In general, life in cities is much different from life in the rural areas. Those who live abroad live in different conditions than those who live in the country. Yet, we have ample indications that women are still subject to many restrictions and disabilities in rural area as well as urban areas. The financial independence of woman and the education levels of the family play an important role in this regard. Women in urban areas face numerous challenges in their professions and personal lives. But overall, life is better for them compared to the past. Love marriage outside of the caste or community are scorned and sometimes the couples are killed or excommunicated by the elders in the family or village. Widows can now have a life of their own and even remarry. They draw a lot of sympathy. But

All of those disadvantages for women in modern society are affecting young girls, and it is hard to raise daughters in today’s culture. We as a country should not just let this inequality continue. Men and women should be treated equally and it is important for parents to raise their kids to make the future less

I have a particular interest in conducting research on gender issues and gender disparities in education. This interest of mine has its roots in my school years, during which I experienced gender-based problems that were governed by rooted conservative traditions and cultural practices. For this reason, I would like to focus my research efforts on countering gender-based constraints and norms that influence the decision of schooling for girls in

As woman is always a sufferer for no fault of her, always victims of male dominated society. She has to play different role in her life. When girl is born, she has to become the target of criticism in many forms for being born as a girl. In her childhood she has to depend on the father. Women always depend on husband after the marriage, and in her old age she depends on the son for her subsistence. As a mother she has to obey her sons, as a wife she has to obey her husband and as a daughter she has to obey her father. Despite her great sacrifices, she faces several male-dominated sufferings. The personality of the typical woman was overwhelmingly swamped by the male dominated attitudes against the backdrop of an exclusively

Sons are preferred because they are more likely to support the family financially while girls have virtually no income. Even before birth, female fetuses are killed in countries like India and China. ABC news released a UNICEF report stating that 7,000 fewer girls are born in India everyday than the global average would suggest. Female fetuses are aborted after sex determination tests but also through murder of newborns. Traditionally, boys will care for their parents once they become part of the elderly group in society. In comparison, girls will only care for the families of those they marry into and not their own. In some Indian families, regardless of wealth, a girl is often viewed as a financial burden. In many cases, when a woman is married off, the families of the groom demand a dowry payment. This payment shows that a daughter will continue to be a burden on the family and also displays their desire to get rid of

People in India show a strong preference to not spend time raising girls. The sex birth ratio in India is one of the worst having 112 boys for every 100 girls born. Gill and Mitra-Kahn believe the reason for this lack of girls is due to

Women’s need to conform to cultural discrimination under the pressure of society and family to choose boys over girls contributes to the beginning of the gendercide cycle. The violence against females never stops; it is a constant battle against females throughout their lives. There are many causes of this violence that create a never ending cycle. One of the major causes is cultural discrimination. In Indian culture, the boy is valued more than a girl mainly “because parents look to their sons to support them in old age” rather than their daughters (FAQ). According to tradition, once daughters are married, “they do not care for their own parents, but rather their husbands’ parents” (ibid). Therefore, society sees more value in a male over a female. A male can support his family more than

Table 3: Sex Ratio In Assam Year 1901 1911 1921 1931 1941 1951 1961 1971 1991 2001 Sex Ratio 919 915 896 874 875 868 869 896 925 932

In conclusion sex selection and gender preference is the manifestation of an anti-women bias, and they are also indicative of a prejudicial and discriminatory attitude towards women. The only possible solution for this issue is to fight against the social structures that disguise the birth of girls a social and economic burden, by doing this not only the social and general aspect towards women will change but also a demographic and gender balance will be achieved in both of these

Child marriage impacts not only the children’s lives, but also of those around them. Especially these young girls that are married off young, before their minds and bodies reach full maturity, become pregnant before they are even ready. In fact, “child marriage also reinforces the gendered nature of poverty, with limited education and skills bringing down the potential of the girl, her family, her community and her country.” These marriages become a sort of economic deal between the families of the bride and the groom. The family of the bride is passing this burden to the marital family, who then expects a dowry for taking the burden that is this young girl from them. The young girl is then forced to do unpaid household work, while the rest of the family have paid employments. Also, women’s sexuality is controlled “in order to limit inheritance of wealth and maintain caste purity.” “Marriage is considered to be ‘safe’ to keep the girl protected from unwanted sexual advances; without such security, a girl who is unmarried and no longer a virgin, is considered to ruin the family reputation.” This places a high value on the young women’s virginity, even that a forced sexual encounter leaves a

The low status of women and girls is due to cultural beliefs and the material cost they represent to their families. Vanaja Dhruvarajan says that there is a belief regarding the nature of men and women: "Men are ritually pure, physically strong, and emotionally mature; women, on the other hand, are ritually pollutable, physically weak, and lack strong willpower" (30). Because of these

In many developing countries literacy has become one of the main focal point for women’s development. Nepal being one of poorest countries in the world has undergone many conflicts and difficulties in its time. For instance, between 1996 to November 2006, the education system became the main substance of violence and conflict; women in Nepal had endured years of discrimination in all levels of circumstances, especially under the patriarchal society where male domination became the norm for the society from an early establishment of the country. This has not only resulted itself in a weaker position with the educational system locally and globally for many decades, but has also added more pressure on women accessing the right to education.

Education is extremely important for every child today, regardless of boy or girl difference. But it is really devastating how many communities and side groups bring about gender differences with a set mind and discriminate against the education of girls.

As noted above, gender disparity in education is closing quickly although there are still significant regional and urban/rural differentials. The net enrollment ratio in primary education for both boys and girls increased from 83 percent in 1995 to 90 percent in 2008. National GERs for girls for primary education increased from about 93 percent in 1996/1997 to about 103 percent in 2002/03, while national GERs for boys increased from about 101 percent in 1996/1997 to about 108 percent in 2002/03. At the primary level, GERs increased from 97.5 percent to 105.8 percent over the same period. GERs for girls grew faster than those of boys, rising by over 10 percent over the period, or at an average of 1.5 percent per year. GERs for boys rose by 6.7 percent over this period or at the rate of about 1 percent per year. Translated, between 1996-97 and 2001-02, the gender gap shrank from 7 percent to 3.5 percent. If this trend were to be sustained, there should be no gender gap at the primary level by 2015. There are significant issues remaining to be addressed, however. As noted in the previous section on education, girls from rural areas and from

Urban families have no qualms sending their girls to school and more and more rural families are also sending their girls to schools. This changing social trend is reflected by the indicators. The girls to boys enrolment ratio in primary schools in 1990 was 0.56 but in 2005 was 0.86. 9 Similarly, the ratios for secondary schools in 1990 was 0.43 and rose to 0.82 in 2005.9 The ratio for tertiary level education in 1990 was 0.32 9 and in 2008 was 0.41.10 Ratio of literate women to men in the age group of 15 to 24, the second indicator, has also jumped from 0.48 in 1990 to 0.73 in 2005.9