Women’s Day & Gender Equality with Face to Faith

Today my U.S. high school students on the east coast discussed women’s equality with high school students in Utah in a video conference.

The video conference was one of several facilitated by the Face to Faith organization to mark International Women’s Day.

It was fascinating to hear the students discuss their impression of  the  status of women around the world. Some students argued that while gender equality might be better in the United States than in many countries, it still had a long way to go, citing statistics that showed women get paid less than men.

Students also discussed the influence of their religious traditions on gender equality. A Mormon student from Utah spoke about how their faith limited the opportunities for women in certain areas while one of our Catholic students made a similar point.

The discussion was lively and energetic, especially when students debated the extent of gender equality in the Untied States.

Face to Faith  was started by British Prime Minister Tony Blair to bring together students  from different cultures and faiths to discuss topics like human rights, religious freedom, festivals, wealth and charity, and the environment.

We used Skype and an online bridging program called Bluejeans to connect with the the students in Utah.  The Face to Faith moderator skyped in from Seattle and the technician who helped us log on at the beginning skyped in from India.

My students enjoyed this conference and look forward to more. They seemed genuinely interested in how the different religions influenced the role of women.

The conferences are easy to set up.  You just need to create an account with Faith to Faith, complete a few lessons about dialogue skills, then book your first conference!