One of the slogans of socialist countries is "Equal Opportunities for Men and Women." Until 10 years ago, Slovenia was a part of a socialist country. The declaration of equal opportunities for men and women helped a bit, especially since families could not live on the incomes of men only. The state arranged kindergartens, which was helpful for working mothers. However, as in all countries, the tradition that a man should be the leader at home and accordingly also in companies, and the fact that women spend on average more time with children than men, made the realization of equal opportunities rather weak. The transition of my country to capitalism did not make this situation better. Only a few women can be found in leading positions in politics or in companies. The fact that elementary and middle schools in Slovenia, as in most European countries, collect more and more data in their programs that teachers do not really understand (even their colleagues at universities many times do not-new discoveries take time to be properly understood and pedagogically presented), and accordingly cannot explain to pupils in a way that pupils can follow and enjoy, forces pupils to memorize without understanding. Because girls are on average more willing to obey requirements than boys, girls are more successful in gathering good marks and so have more possibilities for university studies. For this reason, lawyers, physicians, and economists are mostly women. In physics, teachers in the elementary and middle schools are mostly women, but not researchers and university teachers-they are mostly men. Self-confidence (men much more than women are stimulated by tradition to be leaders) could be a reason for that. Another reason is that research work takes time, and women often have to take care of children when they are young (usually much more than their partners), losing the competition for positions.
展开▼
