Stephen Downes

Lee Kolbert reacts negatively to a worksheet on gender stereotypes distributed by a teacher to a third grade class. Students were given a list fo activities and asked to classify them as activities for boys, girls, or both. The intent is obviously to identify existing stereotypes as a lead-in to a dicussion about what they are and how they were formed. instead, the assignment flared up into a social media tempest and a Huffington Post article. I agree with the parent's description: "A situation where there was seemingly good intention and just naive/poor execution." And it's an example of where online open educational resources would be really useful. Istead of trying to come up with something on her own - which is really typical of in-person teaching - the teacher should have been plugged into a community that shared resources.