See discussions, stats, and author profiles for this publication at: https://www.researchgate.

net/publication/344475448

Gender Stereotype in Education

Conference Paper · July 2019

CITATIONS READS
3 36,048

2 authors:

Arjun Sekhar Pm Parameswari Jayaraman

Kristu Jayanti College Periyar University
5 PUBLICATIONS   9 CITATIONS    9 PUBLICATIONS   11 CITATIONS   

SEE PROFILE SEE PROFILE

Some of the authors of this publication are also working on these related projects:

Quality of work life View project

Influence of religiosity and gender stereotype on attitude towards women View project

All content following this page was uploaded by Arjun Sekhar Pm on 05 October 2020.

The user has requested enhancement of the downloaded file.

 Gender Stereotype in Education

P.M. Arjun Sekhar*

J Parameswari**
Periyar University, Salem, Tamilnadu, India

Abstract

Gender stereotype shapes individuals’ perception and attitude. It also influences students’
classroom experience, choice of subject and academic performance. In an educational setting, the
gender bias has far reaching effect. The biases regarding gender are in fact the result of gender
stereotype that exist in the society. This paper discusses the role of gender stereotype in the
education. The discussion focuses on the gender stereotypes in Science, Technology,
Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) field, gender gap, the role of parents in education,
influence of teachers’ gender stereotypes in education and the gender misconceptions in
education.

Keywords: Gender stereotype, Gender biases, Gender gap, STEM field, Gender misconceptions.

INTRODUCTION

Education is essential for every aspect of people’s development of individuals including

their socioemotional wellbeing and economic development. Education is considered to be the
third eye which empowers people, facilitates innovative and creative thinking and inspires
individuals to dream. Education not only provides reliable information about the external world
but it also helps individuals to think and analyze their self. Educated people learn to be
systematic and practical in day-to-day life. They are able to realize their potentials and become
more productive. However, basic education essentially begins at home and the first teacher of a
child is always his/her parents and other family members. Initially, toddlers listen and learn to
utter words not from school, rather from home or from where they spend their first few years of
life. Home is the place where children learn to walk, talk and learn basic ideas about society.
Then the next level of education begins at school. Children’s learning from school enable them
to become more knowledgeable, rationale and skilled.

1
 Education facilitates individuals in learning their rights in the society. It helps people deal
with and solve social issues and social problems in efficient ways. Further, through education
people understand their personal and social responsibilities, construct and maintain an orderly
society. However, educational institutions fail to impart the real and useful knowledge apart from
subject knowledge. The knowledge they provide is more job oriented than life oriented.

Though education is one of the most important factors for the development of people and
society, there are people who are not able to get basic or higher level education. Many social
constrains prevent people from getting the education. Gender stereotype is one of the social
constraints that make education a dream for many individuals. Gender stereotype is the over
generalization about the characteristics and behaviour of individuals based on gender.
Stereotypes help people to categorize things and simplify day-to-day activities and cognitive
process. Society differentiates the characteristics of males and females with clear boundaries.
Therefore, individuals are expected to behave in a particular way that is appropriate for their
gender. The gender bias in society sometimes restricts people in achieving their dreams because
as per societal norms certain positions are not apt for every gender. It is unfair that certain
individuals are restricted from education because of gender biases shared in the society. This
paper focuses on the disparity in education based on gender concepts in the society.

Aim

To understand the role of “gender stereotype” in education.

Objectives

1. To understand the gender stereotype in Science, Technology, Engineering and

Mathematics (STEM) field
2. To understand the gender gap in education
3. To understand the role of parents in education
4. To understand the role of teacher in nurturing gender stereotype
5. To understand misconceptions about gender in education
6. To understand the role of socialization in education.

2
STEM and gender

Historically, women had very less participation in STEM field as these fields were handled
predominantly by males (Sanders, 2005). The STEM field was considered a high-status
profession where females were not encouraged to aspire while males were forced to aspire (Beed
et al. 2011). This orientation is built purely on the basis of people’s gender stereotype. Females
are considered as caring, loving, physically weak and less intelligent whereas, males are
considered strong, intelligent, responsible, and breadwinners of the family (Wang & Degol
2013). Parents, family members, teachers, peers and the society encourage males to choose
STEM field and females to choose arts and nursing (Gunderson et al. 2012). As a result, students
tend to think that science is a masculine field. Therefore, females show less interest towards
science and males become more passionate towards science field (Archer, DeWitt, Osborne,
Dillon, Willis & Wong, 2010). Though this notion has changed to lesser extend in recent years,
in most families especially in rural areas still gender place a role in choosing the course of study.

Physical strength also greatly contributes to people's perception of the gender-appropriate

educational field. People tend to think that jobs related to STEM field require more physical and
cognitive effort compared to the arts field. Since males are considered physically stronger, it is
assumed that technical jobs that require physical strength are apt for males than females. Because
of the social perception regarding gender, the students are forced to choose a particular
educational field even if they do not prefer (Wang & Degol 2013). Since India follows
patriarchal norms, the influence of patriarchy is clearly visible in educational field. Indian
society expects the husbands to be more educated than their wives. This concept also influences
people's attitude about hierarchy in educational qualification based on gender. As, men are
considered as the breadwinners of a family and STEM field assures high salaried jobs than arts
fields (Beede, Julian, Langdon, McKittrick, Khan & Doms, 2011), males are encouraged to
choose STEM field. Due to the challenging nature of STEM related jobs females are encouraged
to choose arts or nursing field (Reinking & Martin, 2018). This is reflected in the research on
gender pay gap in STEM field by Makarova, Aeschlimann, and Herzog (2019).

3
The gender gap in education

In India, the gender gap in education is still high. According to Ministry of Human Resource
Development (MHRD, 2016) the gender gap in India is 19.6%. Males have better privileges
compared to the other gender because the society follows patriarchal concept (Sahin 2013).
However, one problem faced by the males in education is that they are not encouraged to choose
arts subjects even if they are passionate about the subject. The situation is totally different for the
transgender since most of the people do not consider transgender as a gender. Most of the people
consider transgender people as a sin of God. Therefore, it is difficult for transgenders to access
even basic education. Only a smaller number of transgender people overcome all the obstacles
and achieve higher education. Even though education is envisaged as a fundamental right by the
Indian constitution, the transgenders are not able to access education because of the social
constrains.

People believe that females are incapable and less competent compared to males (Eagly
& Mladinic, 2011) and hence they are not treated as independent individuals. One of the key
hurdles of females’ education is the stereotypes held in the society (Sarkar, Karim and Suffiun,
2017). Similarly, the customs and traditions in India also influence the education of females. In
the patrilocal residence system in India, preference for sons is very strong especially in poor
families (Gupta et al. 2003). According to patrilocal residence, after marriage males remain in
their home while females leave their family and move to the husband's family. Therefore, the
poor families either not send the girl child for education or they spend less resources to educate
their girl child (Altinok & Aydemir, 2015). As a result, in most cases girls are prevented from
going to school or have less educational access. This is one of the main factors why males get
more advantages in education in India. In most of rural areas, parents assign household tasks to
girls after primary education (Sahin 2013).

Role of parents in education

Parents are the first teachers and best source of information for a child. Parents guide their
children to adapt with their environment (Ceka & Murati 2016). Gender appropriate information
from parents help children learn gender appropriate behaviors. As children are not mature
enough to make decisions on their own, parents plan the future for their children. Therefore, the

4
decision about the children's education is purely their parents’ choice. Parents choose school and
courses for their children which they think are best suited for their children. Parent’s attitude
towards education and gender greatly determine their decisions (Hade 2004).

Many parents are not willing to permit their girl child to go for higher education due to
some misconceptions regarding education. Iqbal, Mohyuddin, Ali and Saeed (2013) argue that
the educational attainment of girls is lower if the head of the household entrenched traditional
cultural values. Sarkar, Karim and Suffiun (2017) found in their study that parents with high
traditional gender role attitude and gender biases hold positive and favorable attitude towards
boys’ education, however, their attitude towards girl’s education decreases significantly. Hence
rural girls especially fail to receive higher education. So, to overcome these hazards, parents
need to understand the importance of education for all the genders and be free from social biases
regarding gender in education.

Teachers and Gender Stereotypes

Teachers take the place of parents away from homes at schools. Next to parents teachers have
major influence on children. Students usually consider teachers as perfect persons in the world
who have lot of knowledge. Therefore, students follow each and every instruction of teachers
without a second thought. The ideas and conceptions of teachers are easily observed by students.
A common stereotype in education is about mathematical ability (Keller 2010). People think that
males are better in mathematics than females. If math teachers have this belief, they become
biased toward students’ ability. This may be one of the reasons why boys pay more attention in
mathematics than girls. Even though girls perform equally well in mathematics, they do not get
equal attention from their teachers (Tiedmann 2002). However, teachers encourage female
students in arts subjects. The encouragements from teachers have an impact on the choice of the
subject the student make.

As second guardians, teachers play an important role in students’ decisions about their
higher education and career. When teachers themselves are stereotyped, they tend to be biased
and might cause gender injustice in education (Bigler 2013). Beyond the academic performance,
teachers expect students to behave according to their gender denomination in non-academic
activities. As teachers are considered perfect role models in the society, they are expected to be

5
socially responsible. They in turn teach students to behave in socially appropriate ways.
Therefore, teachers train students to develop skills and ideologies according to student’s gender.
Teachers encourage students to play games which are appropriate to their gender. When teachers
fall prey to social biases, especially, regarding gender, it will be reflected in their attitude and
behavior towards the student (Stromquist, 2007). The discrepancy in treating students based on
their gender reflects on students’ understanding of gender.

Gender Misconceptions in Education

Female students in India are restrained from attaining higher education. Parents’ unwillingness to
educate girl children is one of the major factors. The financial status of family, early marriage,
and education misconceptions are some the additional factors that determine the prospects of the
education of children. Chingtham and Guite (2017) found that the cultural influence is still a
barrier to girls’ education even in this modern era. As a result, parents from rural India are not
yet ready to educate girls. Kamaldeen, Buhari and Parakoyi (2012) pointed that the primary
school dropout percentage of females is 8.2% compared to 2.7% of males. This is mainly due to
the misconception about girl child education. Only when the family face financial crisis, the male
child is forced to drop education and look for job in order to support the family. However, in
most cases females are restricted in attaining higher education compared to males. The
unavailability of educational institutions close to the homes is another factor that prevents girls
from attaining higher education. Further a number of people are apprehensive about sending girls
to faraway places for education on grounds of morality and character. People think that it would
be difficult to find apt alliance for girls if they are educated.

Socialization and Education

Socialization is one of the core factors that contribute to gender discrepancy in education.
Socialization in the context of interaction with parents, peer, teachers and others in educational
setting makes children perceive gender difference and a perceived differential compacity based
on gender for various tasks (Bigler, Hayes & Hamilton, 2013). Thus children believe in
themselves in doing a task not based on their real capabilities rather on the task related gender
appropriateness they learned from the society. Socialization with parents makes the child to
develop attitude and behavior regarding gender appropriate education (Molla, 2016). This gender

6
appropriate educational attitude and behavior is then reinforced when they interact with peers
and teachers.

Classroom socialization takes place through classroom interactions, classroom and school
activities and participation in the educational chores (Kangetha, Lyria & Nyamanga, 2014).
Through socialization, children understand that there are some fields which are appropriate for
their gender. Thus, children begin to focus on some particular educational areas and skills which
they think are gender appropriate. Beyond the influence of teachers and school environment, the
educational materials also have a significant role in promoting gender disparity in education.
Most of the educational materials create gender biases through photos, activities and words. The
portrayed characteristics of gender in the educational materials reinforce the stereotypical gender
roles and thus students connect these with their gender identity. The female occupation portrayed
in the educational textbook are housewives and the characteristics portrayed are introvert and
passive (Islam & Asadullah, 2018). These misrepresentation of females in the educational
textbooks reflect males’ attitude towards females and females’ self-evaluation on the other hand.
The portrayed gender roles in the educational textbooks in turn influence students’ aspirations of
career. Further it makes the girls feel that they are inferior and subordinate (Mishra, Behera &
2012).

Influencing factors

Patriarchy Gender Stereotype Culture and traditions

Socialization agents

Parents Teachers Books Peer

Outcome

Academic achievement Career aspiration Academic involvement

Figure 1. conceptual framework of influence of gender stereotype on academic outcome

7
 Culture and tradition in a patriarchal country gives an unequal representation of gender to
the society. As a result, it develops negative gender stereotype towards women and positive
stereotype towards men. Therefore men are getting all the advantages and women are
disadvantaged in the patriarchal society. Gender disparity develops as a consequence of gender
stereotype that has a significant role in creating gender disparity in education. This is reflected in
the academic achievement, career aspiration, and academic involvement of students. Gender
stereotype regarding education is spread through socialization agents like parents, peer, teachers
and books (fig. 1).

Conclusion:

This paper summarizes the role of gender stereotype in education. Based on the previous studies
and related concepts 6 important areas have been identified, namely, STEM field, gender gap in
education, teachers’ gender stereotype, parents’ role in education, misconceptions in education
and the importance of socialization in education. This paper proposes that there is gender
disparity in education. Gender stereotype, patriarchal systems and the culture, in this regard, play
crucial role in promoting gender disparity in education. The gender stereotype influences
academic achievement, career aspiration and academic involvement through some socialization
agents like parents, teachers, peer group and books. At the same time, the gender stereotype
prevailing in society restricts female education. There are number of misconceptions about
women’s education that further restrict women attaining higher education. Patriarchal systems in
the society encourage people to provide better education to their sons than daughters. This study
concludes with the recommendation of fostering egalitarian concept that could greatly reduce
gender disparity in education.

REFERENCES

[1] Sanders, J. (2005). Gender and technology in education: A research review. Seattle: Center
for Gender Equity.

[2] Beede, D. N., Julian, T. A., Langdon, D., McKittrick, G., Khan, B., & Doms, M. E. (2011).
Women in STEM: A gender gap to innovation. Economics and Statistics Administration
Issue Brief, 04-11. Retrieved from https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED523766.pdf

8
[3] Wang, M. T., & Degol, J. (2013). Motivational pathways to STEM career choices: Using
expectancy–value perspective to understand individual and gender differences in STEM
fields. Developmental Review, 33(4), 304-340. doi:10.1016/j.dr.2013.08.001

[4] Gunderson, E. A., Ramirez, G., Levine, S. C., & Beilock, S. L. (2012). The role of parents
and teachers in the development of gender-related math attitudes. Sex Roles, 66(3-4), 153-
166.

[5] Archer, L., DeWitt, J., Osborne, J., Dillon, J., Willis, B., & Wong, B. (2010). “Doing”
science versus “being” a scientist: Examining 10/11‐year‐old schoolchildren's
constructions of science through the lens of identity. Science Education, 94(4), 617-639.
doi: 10.1111/j.2044-8279.1991.tb00965.x

[6] Wang, M. T., & Degol, J. (2013). Motivational pathways to STEM career choices: Using
expectancy–value perspective to understand individual and gender differences in STEM
fields. Developmental Review, 33(4), 304-340. doi:10.1016/j.dr.2013.08.001

[7] Beede, D. N., Julian, T. A., Langdon, D., McKittrick, G., Khan, B., & Doms, M. E. (2011).
Women in STEM: A gender gap to innovation. Economics and Statistics Administration
Issue Brief, 04-11. Retrieved from https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED523766.pdf

[8] Reinking, A., & Martin, B. (2018). The gender gap in STEM fields: Theories, movements,
and ideas to engage girls in STEM. Journal of New Approaches in Educational Research,
7(2), 148-153. DOI: 10.7821/naer.2018.7.271

[9] Makarova, E., Aeschlimann, B., & Herzog, W. (2019). The gender gap in STEM fields: The
impact of the gender stereotype of math and science on secondary students’ career
aspirations. In Frontiers in Education, 4, 60. doi: 10.3389/feduc.2019.00060

[10] Ministry of Human Resource Development. (2016). Educational statistics at a glance.

https://mhrd.gov.in/sites/upload_files/mhrd/files/statistics/ESG2016_0.pdf

[11] Sahin, E. (2013). Gender Equity in Education. Open Journal of Social Sciences, 2(01), 59.

9
[12] Eagly, A. H., & Mladinic, A. (1994). Are people prejudiced against women? Some answers
from research on attitudes, gender stereotypes, and judgments of competence. European
review of social psychology, 5(1), 1-35. doi: 10.1080/14792779543000002

[13] Sarker, S. I., Karim, A. H. M., & Suffiun, S. M. A. (2017). Parental educational aspiration
and gender inequality of rural children in Bangladesh: the role of parental attitudes of
traditional gender role, gender biased capability, and gender. Journal of International
Women's Studies, 18(2), 134-142. Retrieved from https://vc.bridgew.edu/jiws/vol18/iss2/9/

[14] Das Gupta, M., Zhenghua, J., Bohua, L., Zhenming, X., Chung, W., & Hwa-Ok, B. (2003).
Why is son preference so persistent in East and South Asia? A cross-country study of
China, India and the Republic of Korea. The Journal of Development Studies, 40(2), 153-
187. https://doi.org/10.1080/00220380412331293807

[15] Altinok, N., & Aydemir, A. (2015). The Unfolding of Gender Gap in Education. Sciences de
l'Homme et de la Société. Retrieved from https://halshs.archives-ouvertes.fr/halshs-
01204805

[16] Sahin, E. (2013). Gender Equity in Education. Open Journal of Social Sciences, 2(01), 59.

[17] Ceka, A., & Murati, R. (2016). The Role of Parents in the Education of Children. Journal of
Education and Practice, 7(5), 61-64.

[18] Hade, D. J. (2004). Parenting and child care in rural environments. Proquest Information
and Learning Company.

[19] Iqbal, S., Mohyuddin, A., Ali, Q., & Saeed, M. (2013). Female education and traditional
attitude of parents in rural areas of Hafizabad-Pakistan. Middle-East Journal of Scientific
Research, 18(1), 59-63. DOI: 10.5829/idosi.mejsr.2013.18.1.12384

[20] Sarker, S. I., Karim, A. H. M., & Suffiun, S. M. A. (2017). Parental educational aspiration
and gender inequality of rural children in Bangladesh: the role of parental attitudes of
traditional gender role, gender biased capability, and gender. Journal of International
Women's Studies, 18(2), 134-142. Retrieved from https://vc.bridgew.edu/jiws/vol18/iss2/9/

10
[21] Keller, C. (2001). Effect of teachers' stereotyping on students' stereotyping of mathematics
as a male domain. The Journal of Social Psychology, 141(2), 165-173.

[22] Tiedemann, J. (2002). Teachers' gender stereotypes as determinants of teacher perceptions

in elementary school mathematics. Educational Studies in mathematics, 50(1), 49-62.

[23] Bigler, R., Hayes, A. R., & Hamilton, V. (2013). The role of schools in the early
socialization of gender differences. Encyclopedia on early childhood development, 1-4.
Retrieved from http://www.child-encyclopedia.com/gender-early-socialization/according-
experts/role-schools-early-socialization-gender-differences

[24] Stromquist, N. P. (2007). The gender socialization process in schools: A cross-national

comparison. Background Paper Prepared for the Education for All Global Monitoring
Report 2008. 2008/ED/EFA/MRT/PI/71

[25] Chingtham, T., Guite, T. (2017) Parental Attitude towards Girl’s Education. IOSR Journal
of Research and Method in Educaton, 7(4), pp. 01-06. DOI: 10.9790/7388-0704030106

[26] Kamaldeen, A., Buhari, A. M., & Parakoyi, D. B. (2012). Perception, attitude and practices
of parents in Okene, Nigeria towards girls-child education. International Journal of
Scientific and Research Publication, 2(8), 1-7. Retrieved from
http://www.ijsrp.org/research-paper-0812/ijsrp-p0803.pdf

[27] Bigler, R., Hayes, A. R., & Hamilton, V. (2013). The role of schools in the early
socialization of gender differences. Encyclopedia on early childhood development, 1-4.
http://www.child-encyclopedia.com/gender-early-socialization/according-experts/role-
schools-early-socialization-gender-differences

[28] Molla, E. (2016). The Role of School in Gender Socialization. European Journal of
Education Sciences, 3(1). Retrieved from http://ejes.eu/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/1.pdf

[29] Kangethe, N. S., Lyria, K. S., & Nyamanga, A. M. (2014). The Gender Socialization
Question in Education: Influence on Boys’ and Girls' academic Achievement. European
Scientific Journal, 10(19). Retrieved from

11
 http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1. 941. 6206&rep=
rep1&type=pdf

[30] Islam, K. M. M., & Asadullah, M. N. (2018). Gender stereotypes and education: A
comparative content analysis of Malaysian, Indonesian, Pakistani and Bangladeshi school
textbooks. PloS one, 13(1). doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0190807

[31] Mishra, S., Behera, D. K., & Babu, B. V. (2012). Socialisation and gender bias at the
household level among school-attending girls in a tribal community of the Kalahandi
district of Eastern India. Anthropological notebooks, 18(2), 45-53. Retrieved from
http://www.drustvo-
antropologov.si/AN/PDF/2012_2/Anthropological_Notebooks_XVIII_2_Mishra.pdf

12

View publication stats