EQUITY

Gender equity in education

Gender equity in practicality refers to both male and female concerns, yet most of the gender
bias is against women in the developing world. Gender discrimination in education has been
very evident and underlying problem in many countries, especially in developing countries
where cultural and societal stigma continue to hinder growth and prosperity for women.
Global campaign for Education (GCE) followed a survey called "Gender Discrimination in
Violation of Rights of Women and Girls" states that one tenth of girls in primary school are
'unhappy' and this number increases to one fifth by the time they reach secondary schools.
Some of the reasoning that girls provided include harassment, restorations to freedom, and an
inherent lack of opportunities, compared to boys. United Nations Educational, Scientific and
Cultural Organization (UNESCO) understands Education as a " fundamental human right and
essential for the exercise of all other human rights. It promotes individual freedom and
empowerment and yields important development benefits."

UN Special Rapporteur Katarina Tomasevki developed the '4A' framework on the Right to
Education. The '4A' framework encompasses availability, accessibility, acceptability and
adaptability as fundamental to the institution of education. And yet girls in many
underdeveloped countries are denied secondary education. Figure on the right shows the
discrepancies in secondary education in the world. Countries such as Sudan, Somalia,
Thailand and Afghanistan face the highest of inequity when it comes to gender bias.[14]

Gender-based inequity in education is not just a phenomenon in developing countries. A New

York Times articlehighlights how education systems, especially public school systems, tend to
segregate. Boys and girls are often taught with different approach which programs children to
think that they are different and deserve different treatment. However, studies show that boys
and girls learn differently and therefore should be taught differently. Boys learn better when
they are kept moving while girls learn better sitting in one place with silence. Therefore,
segregation of gender for this reasoning promotes gender equity in education as both boys
and girls have optimized learning.