Happy International Women’s Day on its 100th anniversary! Wandering through web media on this event, I’m intrigued by how many things it represents. (UN Women video, Michelle Bachelet ) It’s a celebration, certainly, of women’s achievements and women’s roles, attended in some countries by demonstrations of appreciation. (I quite like the idea of being given flowers!) It’s also a time of appreciation of all those – women and men, governments and organizations – who champion the rights of women. Clearly, though, it is also a time to recognize continued inequalities, violence against women, and denial of rights; gaining security and equality continues to be a struggle across the world. In any context where global citizenship is the focus, the relevance of the day may be self-evident. What, though, is the relevance to Theory of Knowledge, a course on critical thinking?
One of the most important goals of teaching TOK is to connect an exploration of knowledge issues which takes us into concepts with a grounded reality that demonstrates the relevance and importance of critical thinking skills. And so, here are just a few ways that I’d introduce International Women’s Day myself.
