ABSTRACT
The criticisms levelled at architects and the practice of architecture is well founded. Women do, indeed, represent a minority in architectural education and as practitioners in the field. Architects do strive for ‘starchitect’ status, and many architectural projects emphasise economics over social good. Considerable blame for the situation rests with the pedagogy of architectural history. In most American National Architectural Accrediting Board (NAAB)-accredited architecture schools, history is relegated to two surveys and two electives. Architectural history surveys privilege ‘hero’ architects and their buildings over just about everything else. To attract more students, most of those who teach gender/architecture courses regularly include gender issues in their art/architectural history survey courses. Architecture schools in the United States are accredited by the NAAB, which establishes the requirements schools must meet. Today’s architects rarely need to recall information required of them by most art and architectural history classes.
