Education and gender equality

Gender equality is a global priority for UNESCO and inextricably linked to its efforts to promote the
right to education and support the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
The Education 2030 agenda recognizes that gender equality requires an approach that ‘ensures that
girls and boys, women and men not only gain access to and complete education cycles, but are
empowered equally in and through education’.
UNESCO’s work on education and gender equality is guided by the UNESCO Strategy for gender
equality in and through education (2019-2025) and the Gender Equality Action Plan (2014-2021,
2019 revision). It focuses on system-wide transformation to benefit all learners equally, and supports
targeted action for girls’ and women’s empowerment across three areas of priority: better data,
better policies and better practices.
Large gender gaps exist in access, learning achievement and continuation in education in many
settings, most often at the expense of girls, although in some regions boys are at a disadvantage.
Despite progress, more girls than boys still remain out of school - 16 million girls will never set foot in
a classroom (UNESCO Institute for Statistics) - and women account for two thirds of the 750 million
adults without basic literacy skills. 
Poverty, geographical isolation, minority status, disability, early marriage and pregnancy, gender-
based violence, and traditional attitudes about the status and role of women, are among the many
obstacles that stand in the way of women and girls fully exercising their right to participate in,
complete and benefit from education.

Gender Equity in the Classroom

Some ideas on how to minimize gender bias in our
teaching practice and curriculum.
By Rebecca Alber
January 27, 2017

©Shutterstock.com/AVAVA

For two decades I’ve worked in public schools, and when it

comes to female students in the classroom, I’ve noticed a
trend: In the past, when I observed primary grade
classrooms, a good number of girls would routinely raise
their hands, share their opinions and ideas, and volunteer to
read aloud. Now I observe seventh and eighth grade and
high school classes, and there is a change that starts around
seventh grade: Female students are much quieter and less
outspoken than they were in primary grades.

What’s behind this unsettling shift?

During puberty, children seem heavily influenced by the

traditional gender norms amplified in pop culture. Education
research has found that the stereotypes of assertive male
and passive female are often reinforced in our schools and
in our very classrooms. A commercial titled “Like a Girl” both
captures and disrupts that very gender stereotype.

GENDER DISPARITY: PARTICIPATION

So what about our classrooms? In my many observations of
middle and high school classrooms, male students often lead
and dominate classroom discussions. They raise their hands
more often to answer questions than female students, and
they volunteer more frequently to read aloud their writing or
the class texts. According to research by Fengshu Liu,
because of this, teachers often unconsciously rely on male
students as their target or go-to responders and volunteers.
The result is that girls are then called on less frequently,
compounding their silence and resulting in unintended
gender bias in instructional practices.

In their book Still Failing at Fairness: How Gender Bias

Cheats Girls and Boys in School and What We Can Do
About It, researchers David Sadker, Myra Sadker, and Karen
Zittleman describe observing public and private school
classrooms nationwide over several years. They found that
starting in grade school, teachers engaged less frequently
with female students, asking them fewer questions, while at
the same time providing males with more feedback.

The authors also observed that there was an uneven

distribution of teacher time, energy, and attention—all in
favor of male students. After thousands of observation hours
in various classrooms and grade levels, the research team
reported that the amount of gender stereotypes in lessons
and teaching practices was “startling.”

GENDER DISPARITY: CURRICULAR MATERIALS

In addition to the gender disparity in class participation and
teacher attention, education researcher Kathleen Weiler
found that male-dominant curricular materials are prevalent
in schools throughout the United States.

In my own education research, I recently tallied authors by

gender in three language arts textbooks currently in use in
the second-largest school district in the United States, Los
Angeles Unified (LAUSD). In the eighth-grade language arts
textbook, less than 30 percent of the authors were female.
(Girls comprise 52 percent of the students in LAUSD.) In the
other two textbooks (for ninth grade and 10th grade), the
results were similar.

It’s important to note that this particular textbook publisher is

one of the largest used in public schools across the United
States and, along with language arts textbooks, publishes
textbooks for math, science, social studies, and other
content areas for high school as well as for elementary
grades. Sadker, Sadker, and Zittleman state in their
nationwide findings that male characters continue to
dominate and outnumber females two-to-one in curricular
materials.

EXAMINING OUR PRACTICES AND CURRICULUM

Hidden gender biases in curricula and the socialization of
gender roles lead to inequitable education for girls and for
boys. What changes can be made to create a more equitable
learning environment for all students?

Take a moment to consider the following questions as you

reflect on your own classroom and gender equity:

1. Do any texts I use omit girls and/or women, or tokenize

their experiences? How are boys and/or men stereotyped?

2. Are females or males presented in stereotypically

gendered roles in any texts I have selected? If these are
historical texts, how might I teach students to be critical of
the limitations in the gender roles presented in these texts?

3. Do I encourage empowering and nonsexist behaviors

among my students? Do I discourage both female and male
gender stereotypes?

4. If I have a classroom library, is there a balance in male

and female authors? Are there plenty of books with strong
female protagonists? Do the nonfiction books feature notable
women and girls?
5. In what ways do I encourage gender equity of voice and
participation?

6. Do I ask girls as well as boys complicated questions?

During discussions, do I inquire as diligently and deeply with
female students as I do with male students?

STRATEGIES TO IMPROVE PRACTICES AND CURRICULUM

Here are some ideas for improving gender equity in your
classroom. Please add any strategies you’ve used in the
comments section below.

1. If you find more male authors, scientists, and

mathematicians featured in the textbook you use, do your
own research and add more notable women to the mix.

2. Use wait/think time deliberately. Instead of calling on the

first or second hand, choose the fourth, fifth, or sixth.

3. Be aware of the number of female students you call on.

Be incredibly proactive in making sure that all students
(regardless of gender, ethnicity, language, or learning ability)
are equitably included in discussions and participation.

4. Call out sexist notions or terminology in texts used in the

classroom—for example, a textbook, magazine article,
poem, research report, or blog post. You can also highlight
any gender stereotypical language used by students in the
classroom and use it to invite broader discussion.

5. Videotape your classes and review your interactions with

students. You could also invite a colleague to watch you
teach and note which students are being asked questions,
and what type of questions.

6. Design a lesson or unit of study based on exploring with

your students issues of gender, self-image, and equality. In
partnership with USA Today, the Geena Davis Institute on
Gender in Media offers eight lessons that explore media and
bullying in the context of gender equality.

DISRUPTING GENDER INEQUITIES

Female physicians and surgeons earn 38 percent less than
their male counterparts, and female lawyers earn 30 percent
less than male lawyers, according to Sadker, Sadker, and
Zittleman. Education is a vital tool in helping close this wage
gap. For teachers, continued monitoring of gender bias is
necessary to minimize its impact on students’ opportunities
for learning and for achievement.

We all need to work to become more aware of any gender-

biased tendencies. We need strategies to help us reflect and
change any biased practices, and we need to commit to
combating gender bias in educational materials.

References

Liu, F. (2006). “School Culture and Gender.” In C. Skelton,

B. Francis, & L. Smulyan (Eds.), The SAGE Handbook of
Gender and Education (pp. 425–38). Thousand Oaks, CA:
Sage.

Sadker, D., Sadker, M., & Zittleman, K.R. (2009). Still Failing

at Fairness: How Gender Bias Cheats Girls and Boys in
School and What We Can Do About It. New York, NY:
Scribner.

Weiler, K. (2009). “Feminist Analysis of Gender and

Schooling.” In A. Darder, M. Baltodano, & R. D. Torres, The
Critical Pedagogy Reader (pp. 338–54). New York, NY:
Routledge.

How does gender affect educational

opportunity?
8 July 2019

For a long time, we’ve been told that girls like pink and boys like blue. In the
playground, many believe that girls like dolls, while boys like trucks. Opinions like
this are repeated and reinforced as undeniable facts. But it’s these sorts of traditional
social norms and stereotypes that can lead to gender discrimination in education. How
we view gender has a direct impact on learning opportunities and future career
prospects.
 
The impact of classroom practices in the early years
While differences in the socialisation of girls and boys start with the type of toys
parents choose, it’s the subtle lessons in the classroom that continue this conditioning.
Schools often treat boys and girls as if they were different species. Louisa Nutt is a
board member for VIC ICT for Women – an Australian organisation championing
women in STEAM – and she explains that while girls are rewarded for successful
outcomes at school, boys are rewarded just for the effort. According to Ms Nutt,
females and males are expected to have very different interests, and girls are groomed
for caring roles.
 
Gender bias in the classroom is a worldwide phenomenon, and its impact is felt when
it comes to self-esteem, test results and professional choices. According to the
research of Myra and David Sadker who have studied schools across America for over
20 years, boys seem to dominate teacher time and attention. These findings are
collated in their book, Still Failing at Fairness: How Gender Bias Cheats Girls and
Boys in School and What We Can Do About It, and suggest that boys demand to be
taken notice of, while girls wait patiently to be acknowledged.      
 
Ms Nutt states that gendered practices in the classroom in the early years translate to
women being more risk averse in later life and taking the route that feels comfortable. 

 
Gender discrimination in education influences the subject
choices students make
Persistent stereotypes around the relative ability of girls and boys in school have a
direct impact on the type of subjects that students pursue. Research shows that ‘when
a teacher creates bias in the classroom, the students will, in turn, accept or create bias
in their own literacy experiences.’
 
As students move into high school, they tend to choose subjects conventionally
associated with and expected of their gender. That’s maths and science for boys – arts
and literature for girls. Despite females and males having similar levels of capabilities
in maths and science, the academic choices of girls don’t often reflect their ability.
 
A US study on gender stereotypes found that ‘common stereotypes associate high-
level intellectual ability (brilliance, genius) with men more than women.’ These
typecasts discourage young girls from pursuing certain subjects and fields, and
eventually influence their career choices. In other words, girls grow up believing they
aren’t good at maths and science.
 
Careers are shaped by gender disparity in education
Gender discrimination in education leads to female underrepresentation across many
sectors worldwide – from health and aviation to politics. In STEM industries, men far
outnumber women. The Australian figures show, women only make up 27 per cent of
the STEM workforce. In the USA, the Association of American Medical Colleagues
points out that women account for just 20 per cent of surgeons, while comparatively
90 per cent of nurses are female. Across 67 countries, women occupy less than one-
third of senior and middle-management positions. And few women have broken the
glass ceiling when it comes to politics. New data shows that women are still less
visible in legislatures around the world, making up only 24 per cent of members of
national legislative bodies.
 
So how far have we come? And how far have we got to go?
While women continue to campaign to break the cycle of underrepresentation across
male-dominated careers – and demand not to be excluded from positions of power –
some girls are still likely to never set foot in a classroom. The World Bank
Group estimates that globally 131 million girls remain out of school and face multiple
barriers to getting a good education.  
 
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights sets out the universal right to
education regardless of gender, however, the reality facing girls and women is
somewhat different. Gender discrimination in education is rife around the globe, and
girls and women are often left behind. Statistics show that 15 million girls of primary-
school age will never get the chance to learn to read or write in primary school
compared to 10 million boys. 
 
Edith Cowan University’s (ECU) Master of Education, Leading Education
specialisation Course Coordinator, Dr Christine Cunningham explains, “Gender often
influences whether or not children attend or remain in school, and across the world
girls are more likely than boys to not be attending school and the poorest girls from
the most disadvantaged rural areas tend to have the lowest educational attainment
levels.”
 
“The reason why girls are more likely than boys to not be accessing and then
remaining in school relates to social power structures and socially constructed norms
that define boys and men, and girls and women,” she adds.
 
A global monitoring report by UN Women breaks down the gender-based
discrimination that’s deeply rooted and present across all countries. The findings
make it startlingly obvious why girls and women are blocked from accessing
education. The data shows that, in 18 countries, husbands can legally prevent their
wives from working; in 39 countries, daughters and sons do not have equal
inheritance rights; and 49 countries lack laws protecting women from domestic
violence. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg.
 
Dr Cunningham states, “These gender roles affect their rights, responsibilities,
opportunities and capabilities, including their access to and treatment in school.”
 
Bridging the gender gap: the next global challenge
In 2015 the United Nations adopted the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development,
with a commitment to gender equality featuring prominently in that vision. While
governments have made pledges and legally binding commitments to fulfil women’s
human rights, gender disparity in education and gender discrimination in education
are complex realities that require gender-responsive policies and accountability
processes.
 
According to the Turning Promises into Action report ‘prioritising gender-responsive
investments pays off.’ The report contends that in South Africa alone, an estimated
gross annual investment of 3.2 per cent of GDP in early childhood education and care
(ECEC) would result in universal coverage for all 0-5-year-old children. It would also
create 2.3 million new jobs, ultimately raising female employment by 10.1 per cent.
It’s a testament to the idea that with small steps, big changes can happen.
 
Delve into this topic and more with the Master of Education, Leading Education
specialisation. 

ntroduction

The study of gender and education encompasses gender differences in educational outcomes such as achievement,
attainment, and experiences within the education system. This field also moves beyond the study of how gender
influences educational outcomes and incorporates how these differences impact the labor market, family formation,
and health outcomes. Early research in gender and education focused on whether differences in the educational
outcomes of males and females were due to biological differences. Over time, research began to show that biological
differences between genders tend to be smaller than those within gender. Thus, biological differences may play a
relatively small role in educational outcomes while other factors like socialization and differences in expectations of
boys and girls may play a larger role. Research on primary and secondary school students examined how peer,
teacher, and family interactions are related to gender differences while research on higher education examined sex
segregation by major and gender differences in choices to attend or complete college. Recently, research has shifted
to examine the causes and consequences of the reversal of the gender gap in educational attainment. Women now
outpace men in both college enrollment and completion in the majority of countries throughout the world. However,
stark gender differences are still registered in field of study and returns to educational credentials. This article
includes classic works, research resources, empirical articles, and theoretical perspectives on gender and education.

General Overviews

General overviews of gender and education provide broad information on trends and theories in this field. Jacobs
1996 focuses on gender specific trends in higher education and early theories that sought to explain these
differences, while Buchmann, et al. 2008 provides a contemporary review of the literature on gender inequalities in
education. DiPrete and Buchmann 2013 provides a thorough review and analyses of historical trends in gender and
education in the United States, while Charles 2011 reviews trends in gender equality in education throughout the
world. Grant and Behrman 2010 and King and Hill 1997 both examine education patterns by gender in developing
countries. Today, like developed nations, these countries are experiencing a reversal of the gender education gap
where females now have an advantage over males.