Exploring Gender Equality in Education
Build the skills and strategies to make your school more inclusive by recognising and responding to gender inequality.
Duration
3 weeksWeekly study
4 hours100% online
How it worksDigital upgrade
Free
Exploring Gender Equality in Education
Gain greater awareness of issues around gender inequality in education
Education systems can present both opportunities and barriers to gender equality.
On this three-week course from the British Council, you’ll hear how schools can become more gender-responsive, reflect on opportunities in your own learning environment, and gain practical approaches to put these into action.
Explore the key concepts in gender, from equality and equity to power relations
Gender affects the way society is structured and how we work with people. Our perceptions of our gender are formed by our upbringing, known as gender socialisation.
You’ll start this course by looking at how gender norms and stereotypes can influence learning environments and how gender relations are linked to power relations, especially in the context of education.
Develop practical strategies for gender-responsive teaching
Gender-sensitive and inclusive teaching involves teaching methods and activities that pay attention to the specific learning needs of girls and boys.
Through case studies and real-life stories, you’ll explore how teachers from different countries are making their schools more inclusive for all genders. You’ll then look at the different ways you can implement these strategies in your own context, such as creating trust and positive relationships for classroom management and evaluating learning materials and developing curriculums with gender inclusion in mind.
Learn how to evaluate your school and decide where to focus your action
This course will guide you through practical tools to identify areas that you’d like to see change in your school. From a more gender-responsive school ethos to staff development and community involvement, you’ll explore the bigger picture of gender issues before honing in on the areas where you can make the biggest impact in your school.
Syllabus
Week 1
Key concepts in gender
Welcome
Meet your educators and other learners on the course.
Talking about gender
Learn about gender norms and stereotypes and where they come from.
Gender analysis
Reflect on educational opportunities for different genders.
Who has the power?
Critically reflect on power relations in your country or community.
Gender equality and gender equity
Learn about gender equality and equity and what transformation change means in education.
Where are you now?
Consider how gender-sensitive your school is.
Review
Reflect on what you've learned in Week 1 of the course.
Week 2
Gender-responsive teaching
Models of inclusion – where is your school?
Discuss how education systems can provide protection from gender discrimination but also create barriers.
Recognising bias
Reflect on how gender bias can be conscious or unconscious.
Classroom management
Take part in reflective teaching tasks to make your classrooms more gender-responsive.
Differentiation
Explore inclusive teaching strategies.
Curriculum development
Explore how curriculum and learning materials can reinforce or challenge gender bias.
Review
Reflect on what you've learned in Week 2 of the course.
Week 3
Towards transformation in education
Power and violence in schools
Reflect on power, violence and consent and the impact on education.
Case studies
Analyse examples of real teachers and school leaders who have made changes in their schools.
Planning for change
Complete an evaluation of your school and choose an area where you'd like to make a difference.
Involving parents and the community
Consider how parents and the community can support transformational change.
Action points and peer support
Create your own action point, and learn from each other's plans.
Review and next steps
Reflect on what you've learnt in Week 3 of the course.
When would you like to start?
Start straight away and join a global classroom of learners. If the course hasn’t started yet you’ll see the future date listed below.
Available now
Learning on this course
On every step of the course you can meet other learners, share your ideas and join in with active discussions in the comments.
What will you achieve?
By the end of the course, you‘ll be able to...
- Develop a greater awareness of issues around gender inequality in education
- Identify practical strategies for gender sensitive teaching – classroom management, differentiation, curriculum development
- Create a plan for change in your classroom and school
Who is the course for?
This course is designed for teachers and other members of the school community who would like to grow their understanding of gender inequality and the impact it can have on children and young people’s learning.
Who will you learn with?
I've worked in EFL/ESL for 25 years, living in Germany, Poland and Hungary, as well as training teachers worldwide on CELTA courses. I have a PGDip in IT (humanities) and an MLitt in Creative Writing.
With expertise in teacher training and educational leadership across four continents, I am dedicated to empowering teachers and enhancing remote access to education for all.
Who developed the course?
British Council
The British Council builds connections, understanding and trust between people in the UK and other countries through arts and culture, education and the English language.
We work on the ground in more than 100 countries. In 2019-20 we connected with 80 million people directly and with 791 million people overall, including online and through our broadcasts and publications.
What's included?
British Council are offering everyone who joins this course a free digital upgrade, so that you can experience the full benefits of studying online for free. This means that you get:
Learning on FutureLearn
Your learning, your rules
- Courses are split into weeks, activities, and steps to help you keep track of your learning
- Learn through a mix of bite-sized videos, long- and short-form articles, audio, and practical activities
- Stay motivated by using the Progress page to keep track of your step completion and assessment scores
Join a global classroom
- Experience the power of social learning, and get inspired by an international network of learners
- Share ideas with your peers and course educators on every step of the course
- Join the conversation by reading, @ing, liking, bookmarking, and replying to comments from others
Map your progress
- As you work through the course, use notifications and the Progress page to guide your learning
- Whenever you’re ready, mark each step as complete, you’re in control
- Complete 90% of course steps and all of the assessments to earn your certificate
Want to know more about learning on FutureLearn? Using FutureLearn
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