While we live in a world where gender roles have entered a cultural forum for conversation and exploration, the 1950s weren’t exactly known as a time of similar discourse. Home economics was for girls, and shop class was for boys, and many people didn’t see the need to challenge these norms. And while we believe that girls and boys may naturally possess different tendencies or interests, we’re looking at 22 different ways the school system reinforced gender stereotypes in the ’50s to better understand what school might have been like back then. Baby Boomers in the house, what did we miss?
#1: Cheerleading Was the Only Sport-like Role for Girls
Despite women worldwide asserting themselves in sports since the late 1800s, public schools didn’t include girls in their sporting programs until the 1970s or later. Girls who wanted to compete athletically were left with cheerleading, a sport that is seen as merely a backup support to football teams despite the degree of strength, balance, and coordination it requires.
