Welcome to Season 3, Episode 7 of CSS Breakdown: Book by Book. In this chapter of Michael Kimmel’s "The Gendered Society," we step into the classroom—not just as a place of learning, but as a powerful space where gender norms are reinforced, challenged, and sometimes resisted.

Chapter 7 of The Gendered Society explores how schools are not neutral zones, but deeply gendered institutions. From early opposition to women’s education to today’s hidden curriculum, Kimmel traces how stereotypes are embedded in classroom interactions, textbooks, media, and even teacher expectations. This episode examines how boys and girls receive different messages about their potential, how peer policing enforces rigid gender roles, and how issues like sexual harassment and homophobic bullying undermine learning—especially for girls and gender nonconforming students. We also critique the popular push for single-sex education and discuss how real progress depends on transforming the educational environment to support equality, inclusion, and the full humanity of all students.