New Commonwealth pilot action project aims to tackle stereotypes preventing boys and girls from achieving at school
26 Nov 2008
New Commonwealth pilot action project aims to tackle stereotypes preventing boys and girls from achieving at school
In classrooms across the Commonwealth today, boys and girls are behaving very differently. Teachers from Malaysia and Seychelles report that girls are achieving notably higher grades in some subjects, while boys’ performance is poor. In Trinidad and Tobago, many male students are showing clear resistance to learning, which is widely perceived to be a ‘girl’ thing. In some schools, female aggression is on the rise.
Other Commonwealth countries such as Mozambique and India are battling to reduce drop-out rates for girls – even at a very young age. Many girls never see the inside of a classroom, are married off in their early teens, and remain illiterate and uneducated for the rest of their lives.
Gender issues at school have implications for the wider aspects of development, including economics, human rights, health and democracy. Experts believe that intervention during adolescence, when opinions are being formed, is crucial for shaping gender attitudes and tackling health issues such as HIV/AIDS.
In October 2008 at the University of East Anglia in Norwich, UK, 16 teachers and educators met to discuss the first outcomes of a long-term Commonwealth project on gender in schools.
Gender stereotyping
Their findings showed that gender stereotyping is prevalent among teachers, peers and in homes across a range of socio-economic backgrounds and in both rural and urban areas. It is a behaviour learned and perpetuated through modelling and cultural expectations.
The ‘Action Gender in Schools’ project was initiated by the Commonwealth Secretariat’s Education Section in 2008 and aims to draw on the experiences of teachers as well as parents, the broader community and pupils.
It is hoped that the research can identify how school processes question or reinforce dominant, unequal ideas about gender and what practices do and don’t work in addressing gender problems in the classroom.
Read More...
Source: The Commonwealth Secretariat
Other Commonwealth countries such as Mozambique and India are battling to reduce drop-out rates for girls – even at a very young age. Many girls never see the inside of a classroom, are married off in their early teens, and remain illiterate and uneducated for the rest of their lives.
Gender issues at school have implications for the wider aspects of development, including economics, human rights, health and democracy. Experts believe that intervention during adolescence, when opinions are being formed, is crucial for shaping gender attitudes and tackling health issues such as HIV/AIDS.
In October 2008 at the University of East Anglia in Norwich, UK, 16 teachers and educators met to discuss the first outcomes of a long-term Commonwealth project on gender in schools.
Gender stereotyping
Their findings showed that gender stereotyping is prevalent among teachers, peers and in homes across a range of socio-economic backgrounds and in both rural and urban areas. It is a behaviour learned and perpetuated through modelling and cultural expectations.
The ‘Action Gender in Schools’ project was initiated by the Commonwealth Secretariat’s Education Section in 2008 and aims to draw on the experiences of teachers as well as parents, the broader community and pupils.
It is hoped that the research can identify how school processes question or reinforce dominant, unequal ideas about gender and what practices do and don’t work in addressing gender problems in the classroom.
Read More...
Source: The Commonwealth Secretariat
