Diversity In Education: Initial Impression And Observations At Toys

EDUC 382 Diversity in Education Final paper
Section 1
Professor: Ozlem Sensoy
Teaching Assistant: Somayeh Bahrami

Name: SONY (Tun, Htet Yan Aung)
ST.ID: 301075860
Date: Thursday, 31 July 2014

EDUC 382 Diversity in Education: FINAL

1. Initial Impression and Observations at Toys “R” Us

I visited a toy store named Toys “R” Us on 1110 Lougheed Hwy in Coquitlam, BC for this assignment. When I approached the store, the first thing I saw was a huge parking lot with some parking spaces for disabled drivers. The doors for entering the toy store had buttons for disabled people to access and enter the store. When I first entered the store, I noticed the store was very secured and had security cameras
The set up of the store and the design of the toys filters their perceptions and affect how the children should be positioned in the society. These toys have an impact on the dreams and hopes on the young girls, making them believe that these painted images are the ideal. These nonverbal messages quietly embed into our values and affect our view of things around us. As mentioned in the book, “Is Everyone Really Equal”, the authors stated that one’s preferences “are never simply one’s internally-driven likes or dislikes”. To gain social acceptance, the girls are pressured to behave and make choices in the way that society defines as the norm. This adds to the already existing oppression of women that are strongly rooted into the society’s male dominant system. As boys are encouraged to play with toys that allow them to achieve higher education and career paths, they will more likely to be confident and believe that they are supposed to be successful in the society. In this male dominant society where all major institutions are controlled by men, this sign further increases their chances of maintaining this superior
Before I was born, my parents had already found out my gender and started shopping for male related products in preparing for my arrival. My parents designed my baby room with blue wall paper and most items purchased for me was blue or dark colour. Most of my baby clothing were specifically for boys with pictures of tools, moustaches, ties or tuxedos. Most of my toys were cars, trains or airplanes. None of the items purchased for me was pink in color or showed feminine traits. As I grew older, the toys I played with usually involved activities that had mechanical or analytical components. I often played with Lego building blocks to build castles and warships to battle against the evil. I also had boxes of problem solving puzzles that involved education and learning as I played with them. Many of my toys such as doctor kits also allowed me to understand and exposed to different career