What is Gender and why is it so important?

The meaning of “Gender”

Gender is not a major feature in many educational systems in the Asia-Pacific region, often because it is not well understood.  “Gender” does not refer to the biological differences between males and females; the term “sex” covers this distinction.

“Gender” refers to the social roles, responsibilities, and behaviours that are believed to belong to men and women; for example, “men as income earners” and “women as child caregivers.”  Gender roles are created by a society and are learned from one generation to the next.  Because gender roles are socially learned, they can be changed to achieve equity and equality for women and men.  For instance, we can change the gender roles of “women as child caregivers” to “women as income earners,” “men as income earners” to “men as child caregivers,” or, better yet, “men and women as income earners and child caregivers.”

Ministry officials, teachers, parents, and often girls and boys, themselves, may deny that they are biased in terms of gender, and they may be quite truthful that this is what they believe. It is difficult for them to see a “problem” when it has become a normal, ingrained part of their lives. But asking such questions as “Are there alternatives to girls cleaning the classroom?” or “What would happen if boys did the cleaning, while girls moved the desks?” can cause them to reflect, reconsider, and look more closely at their own assumptions. They can begin to see how traditional gender roles and norms can affect what, and how, their children learn.

The importance of ensuring gender equality

Promoting gender equality is an important part of all areas of education.  It is the means by which we can ensure not only that the basic needs of girls and boys are met, but that they have the opportunity to achieve their full potential and realize their human rights.

Ensuring gender equality for girls and boys means that girls and boys have equal opportunities to enter school, as well as to participate in and benefit from the range of subjects or other learning experiences that are offered in classrooms and schools. Through gender-sensitive curricula, learning materials, and teaching-learning processes, girls and boys become equally equipped with the life skills and attitudes that they will need to achieve their fullest potential within and outside of the educational system regardless of their sex. 

Achieving gender equality also means that we need to move away from looking at children collectively as “students” or “pupils” and to focus more on the specific situation of “girls” and “boys” within the classroom and school to ensure gender equality in learning for both.