Final answer:
Laws and policies have reinforced ideas of children being in submissive roles compared to adults, with education systems historically showing gender biases and child labor laws highlighting differing societal expectations on children's roles.
Step-by-step explanation:
Certain laws and policies have historically reinforced the idea that children, particularly in their interactions and distinctions with adults, should adhere to strict norms that typically place them in submissive roles. For example, the gender bias in education, as highlighted by Sadker and Sadker (1994), suggests that boys are often perceived as more intelligent and given more leeway to express themselves, while girls are interrupted more frequently and are not praised as often as boys. This kind of skewed interaction underlines the traditional treatment of boys and girls differently, promoting competition instead of collaboration and reinforcing gender inequalities from an early age. Meanwhile, the treatment of child labor as observed in the United States shows a strong contrast with practices in countries like Niger and Sierra Leone, where child labor remains a socially acceptable norm due to limited regulation. This dichotomy accentuates the difference in societal expectations and the roles ascribed to children in various cultural contexts.