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Controversies around educational projects for gender equality in Italy

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Ludovica Anedda

Chapter 1. Gender and education: Conceptual framework

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1In the course of the ensuing chapter, a conceptual framework for the investigation is provided. The first section (pp. 30‑41) deals with the definitions of some of the notions that are central to this research. This task is particularly delicate and important, because too often there is obvious confusion when talking about gender issues (Marzano, 2015). The second section (pp. 41-60) more directly takes into consideration the dimensions and dynamics of gender issues in education. Firstly, I observe how these issues are given expression in educational establishments, looking at the reality within classrooms and at students’ educational outcomes. The power of education in the construction and reinforcement of gender norms is underlined here. Secondly, I bring out different ways in which education can serve as a means to deconstruct these gender norms. Through the design of specific projects and programmes meant to tackle gender equality, and through the construction of an inclusive education (Solar, 1998), it is in fact possible to integrate a gender approach into education. This conceptual framework includes specific references to the Italian context. The fundamental objective of this chapter is to provide an overview of the main issues and concepts that come into play when engaging with education from a gender perspective.

Working definitions

Sex and gender

2What does it mean to talk about gender? The term gender (in Italian genere) has been subject to complex developments over time, and it seems to indicate variable realities in accordance with different periods and places. For example, it is used at times as a substitute for the term sex, and at times to indicate the “social aspects that come on top of the biological ones” (Bencivenga, 2012, p. 11). Bencivenga highlights that this term is used in different ways in our everyday life, and in particular in opposition to the term sex. We have the tendency to use the term sex when we speak of sexual actions or sexual preferences, while the term gender is used when we speak of lifestyles, discrimination, equality (Bencivenga, 2012, p. 14). Moreover, she underlines that most often, in newspaper articles, for instance, the two terms are interchanged, indicating a lack of comprehension of the differences between their meanings (Bencivenga, 2012).

3But what is sex and what is gender? How do we distinguish between the two? As Butler (1986) points out, most often “sex is understood to be the invariant, anatomically distinct, and factic aspects of the female body, whereas gender is the cultural meaning and form that that body acquires, the variable modes of that body’s acculturation” (p. 35). However, Butler (1999) sees this distinction in a different manner:

Taken to its logical limit, the sex/gender distinction suggests a radical dis-continuity between sexed bodies and culturally constructed genders. Assuming for the moment the stability of binary sex, it does not follow that the construction of “men” will accrue exclusively to the bodies of males, or that “women” will interpret only female bodies. Further, even if the sexes appear to be unproblematically binary in their morphology and constitution (which will become a question), there is no reason to assume that genders ought also to remain as two. (p. 10)

4Butler (2004) argues that sex and gender cannot be understood separately and that it is not easy to make a distinction between what is true in a material sense and what is true in a cultural sense in a sexed body (p. 87).

5For the purpose of this research, the definition of gender provided by Scott (1988) is particularly interesting. This consists of the connection and articulation between two clauses: “[1] gender is a constitutive element of social relationships based on perceived differences between the sexes, and [2] gender is a primary way of signifying relationships of power” (p. 1068).

6Scott breaks down her definition, separating the two parts to better understand them. As a constitutive element of social relationships, gender involves four interrelated components. Firstly, it entails culturally available symbols that evoke multiple (and often contradictory) representations: she takes as an example the representations of Eve and Mary as symbols of women in the Western Christian tradition. Secondly, according to Scott, gender involves normative concepts related to the interpretations of these symbols, which are expressed in religious, educational, scientific, legal and political doctrines that define what it means to be male and female, masculine and feminine. Thirdly, a gendered system constitutes the reality within the household, but also in the labour market, in education, and in the polity itself. More specifically, Scott argues that “gender is constructed through kinship, but not exclusively; it is constructed as well in the economy and the polity” (1988, p. 1068). The fourth component of gender as a constitutive element of social relationships is its subjectivity.

7The second part of Scott’s definition explains gender as “a primary way of signifying relationships of power”, which means that “gender is a primary field within which or by means of which power is articulated” (p. 1068). Undoubtedly, gender is not the only way through which power is articulated, but concepts of gender do structure perception and the organisation (both concrete and symbolic) of all social life (Bourdieu, 1980). In this sense, “gender becomes implicated in the conception and construction of power itself” (Scott, 1988, p. 1069).

8Building on Scott’s (1988) definition of gender and its dimensions, I shall explore the definition of gender as a system of norms that determines a hierarchy of the masculine and the feminine, wherein the masculine is given an advantage over the feminine (Dayer, 2014, p. 46). According to Dayer’s (2014) definition, the fact that the masculine is given an advantage over the feminine means not only that in our society these norms establish that men are given an advantage to the detriment of women, but also that elements that socially and culturally constitute what is most often defined as “masculine” are given an advantage and priority over what constitutes the “feminine”. Socio-historical factors construct ideas of what is “manlike” and “womanlike” (Stapleton & Wilson, 2004, p. 47), and therefore construct gender norms, where a norm can be defined as “a standard of appropriate behaviour for actors with a given identity” (Finnemore & Sikkink, p. 891).

Gender norms

9Gender studies constitute the research field that takes into account gender norms and codes in society. They are composed of a collection of different types of research, which are in line with scientific fields, ranging from natural sciences to social sciences and the humanities (Dayer & Collet, 2014, p. 10). The notion of a present hierarchy between the different sex categories, and between the norms that define what is masculine and what is feminine (Dayer & Collet, 2014, p. 10), is central to gender studies. Like feminism, gender studies go beyond a simple distinction between the notions of gender and sex: in fact, they do not intend merely to distinguish the different social roles assigned to biological characteristics – they intend to deconstruct and “denaturalise” gender norms (Fassin, 2014, p. 39). Why is it important to deconstruct these norms? One of the reasons is that they are representative of a mechanism of female subordination, which Ortner (1974) identifies through three types of data:

(1) elements of cultural ideology and informants’ statements that explicitly devalue women, according them, their roles, their tasks, their products, and their social milieux less prestige than are accorded men and the male correlates; (2) symbolic devices, such as the attribution of defilement, which may be interpreted as implicitly making a statement of inferior valuation; and (3) social-structural arrangements that exclude women from participation in or contact with some realm in which the highest powers of the society are felt to reside. (Ortner, 1974, p. 69)

10Being a man and being a woman are not distinct categories, but instead are interdependent and have to do with human relations: “a girl is related to and defined by girls’ relationships with boys, and vice versa. […] Ways of being masculine and feminine form a continuum, rather than distinct categories” (MacNaughton, 2006, p. 130). However, a “social gender dichotomy is present in all known societies, in the sense that everywhere anatomic sexual differences observable at birth are used to start tracking the newborn into one of the two social role complexes” (Ortner & Whitehead, 1981, p. 83).

11The way this distinction is carried out responds to certain patterns that “differ radically between societies, and even between generations, social classes, ethnic or religious groups within the same society” (Skelton, Francis, & Smulyan, 2006, p. 8). In fact, what we call masculinity and femininity “involve the negotiation of an existing set of culturally defined labels, concepts and discursive positioning, thereby generating variable and contextualised constructions of the categories in question” (Stapleton & Wilson, 2004, p. 46).

  • 1 A stereotype is “an over-simplified mental image of some category of person, institution or event w (...)

12Every reference to masculinity and femininity in this study refers to the way these terms are typically understood, in particular within a framework of “Western” notions, looking at male and female stereotypes1. Overall, most often men are considered to be aggressive and competitive, women rather passive and expressive (Stets & Burke, 2000, p. 3). The traditionally male stereotype is ambitious, combative, audacious, cold, independent, logical, rational, while the female stereotype generally is represented by docility, emotions, feelings and sensibility (Collet, 2011; Le Maner-Idrissi, 1997).

13These conceptions of masculinity and femininity are often encountered within a nature vs. nurture debate. On one hand, they are viewed as the results of innate differences between men and women. To support this argument, the animal world is often taken as an example, observing the roles of females and males in certain animal species (Collet, 2016, p. 27). Masculinity and femininity are thus considered strictly linked to biological sex, by asserting that differences between men and women are proof of biological determinism, and that we should submit to a supposed law of nature that imposes different destinies on individuals because of a different biology (Collet, 2016, p. 26). According to the biological sex, a newborn is identified as a boy or a girl. From this starting point, specific behaviours are directly associated with biological factors (e.g. aggressive attitudes for boys, and predisposition for social interaction for girls) (Le Maner-Idrissi, 1997, p. 109). In our society, where gender-based inequalities are a constant reality, this biological determinism translates into the notion that men are “the naturally dominant sex” (Ortner, 1974, p. 71). As a result, biological determinists would argue that “women [are] not only naturally subordinate, but in general [they are] quite satisfied with their position, since it affords them protection and the opportunity to maximise maternal pleasures, which to them are the most satisfying experiences of life” (Ortner, 1974, p. 71).

14On the other hand, the “nurture” argument of this debate is at the centre of gender studies, which see norms and characteristics associated with masculinity and femininity as socially and culturally constructed. This is not intended to suggest that biological factors are irrelevant or that men and women are not different, “but that these facts and differences only take on significance of superior/inferior within the framework of culturally defined systems” (Ortner, 1974, p. 71).

15Undoubtedly, the construction of norms depends heavily on socialisation, namely the process by which “principled ideas held by individuals become norms in the sense of collective understandings about appropriate behaviour which then lead to changes in identities, interests and behaviour” (Risse, Ropp, & Sikkink, 1999, p. 11). This process of socialisation occurs at different levels and stages of one’s life. For the purpose of this research, I am particularly interested in the process of socialisation we go through as children, through the influences of a number of actors, such as siblings, grandparents, babysitters, pre-school educators and others, which make us social beings (Collet, 2016, p. 29).

16A number of studies show the presence of certain expectations even before children are born, through differentiated representations of children (Le Maner-Idrissi, 1997). For example, parents tend to build a certain environment to welcome the child into the world, including through a specific choice of colours to paint their bedrooms (e.g. never pink for little boys) (Collet, 2014, p. 28), with simpler rooms for little boys, while using more decorations and accessories for little girls’ rooms (Gianini Belotti, 2016, p. 26). Starting from a young age, parents’ reactions to children’s behaviours and competences tend to be differentiated: they tend to respond more favourably to girls’ expressions of emotions, while they are more tolerant of boys being noisy or “turbulent” (Collet, 2011, p. 30). Moreover, parents tend to encourage girls’ pro-social behaviour, while reacting more to boys’ physical demonstrations (Le Maner-Idrissi, 1997, p. 54). Parents tend to have a specific idea of the model their children should attain: through a variety of verbal stimuli, the adult transmits to the child the values he or she “should” respond to (Gianini Belotti, 2016, p. 75).

17By the age of two, children have already integrated their gender roles (Collet, 2011, p. 32). At this point, it is generally more difficult for boys than for girls to go beyond the expectations related to their sex. While girls tend to have access to a wider range of attitudes, little boys already need to respond to expectations of “virility”: to love activities that are aimed at girls not only means to lose value, but also to call into question their future sexual preferences (Collet, 2011, p. 33).

18In the course of her research, Le Maner-Idrissi (1997) shows that parents’ reactions are definitely evident in this context as well. In fact, boys tend to be particularly encouraged by their parents to play with games that are considered appropriate for their sex, while they are often punished when they attempt to engage in activities and games that are generally labelled as feminine (e.g. playing with dolls) (p. 71).

19This form of undermining and even oppressing the “feminine” tends to be evident also in adult life. In examining print advertisements, Martin and Gnoth (2009) show that men respond more favourably to masculine models and are negative towards feminine ones. This research emphasises the fact that “men face substantial normative pressure to endorse traditional masculinity and exhibit an aversion to appearing feminine” (p. 356).

20Gender studies do not intend to blame parents for the construction and reinforcement of gender norms (Collet, 2011, p. 24). First of all, it is basically impossible to educate two children in an identical manner (Collet, 2016, p. 29). Moreover, as previously underlined, parents are not the only actors of children’s education, since they are subject to multiple influences and external stimuli.

21One of the most common and obvious examples of these external stimuli is the differentiation of toys for boys and for girls: it is in children’s toys and in the way they use them that the reproduction of the social reality they live in becomes evident (Gianini Belotti, 2016, p. 91). Often parents would argue that it is the children who choose specific toys, without, however, considering that children will choose from the range of options that is available to them (Gianini Belotti, 2016, p. 85). On one hand, toys that are most often aimed at boys imply the importance of values such as courage, a spirit of adventure, and interest in discovery. On the other hand, girls’ toys tend to make reference to the domestic sphere and external physical appearance (Collet, 2011, p. 35). Toys are the result of a very specific culture within which there appear to be many different options and possible choices, but where, in reality, they are limited (Gianini Belotti, 2016, p. 83). Boys and girls are led very early to identify the “right” and “wrong” toys: “the differentiation in games presented to males and females is such that ‘certain preferences’ after the age of four or five begin to signify that the male or female child has not accepted their role, therefore something went wrong” (Gianini Belotti, 2016, p. 88).

22Toys are not the only objects that contribute to making a strict distinction between categories, between what is supposedly “for girls” or “for boys”. The page “Pointlessly gendered products” 2 on Tumblr 3 provides some examples, by showing a wide range of objects that make a clear distinction between what is pink and “for girls” and what is generally blue and “for boys”, with tape, ear plugs, sleep masks, pens, etc. These distinctions clearly contribute to the construction of very specific categories in children’s minds, implying that they have to attain one of them in order to be an individual. There is no room for flexibility, and the youngsters perceive this from an early age: there are only two categories, with very specific characteristics, and as a child, not only do you have to belong to one of them, but you are assigned the “right” category by the rest of society because of your biological sex:

No one can know how many energies, how many qualities are destroyed in the process of forced imposition for children of both sexes in the masculine-feminine schemes, no one could ever tell us what a little girl could have become if she would not have found on the path of her development the obstacles derived simply by her sex. (Gianini Belotti, 2016, p. 9)

23Children’s books and stories also contribute to the definition of traditional gender role division: the traditional tales of Perrault and the Brothers Grimm constantly present women either as evil witches or as delicate, submissive, resigned (e.g. Cinderella), fragile and abused (e.g. Cinderella, Snow White) creatures who can only be saved by the intervention of a brave, strong, heroic man. These stories already construct certain stereotypes that can be recognised by children, creating the bases for those gender norms that movies, advertisement and television series help reinforce.

24Disney animated films constitute further examples that underline the aforementioned gender norms. A study by Towbin, Haddock, Zimmerman, Lund, and Tanner (2003) examined a sample of 26 full-length animated Disney films, and found that gender stereotypes have persisted over time (in addition to racial and cultural stereotypes). In their study, five themes related to a definition of boys and men emerged, together with four themes related to the definitions of girls and women. With respect to the former, they underlined that “(a) Men primarily use physical means to express their emotions or show no emotions; (b) men are not in control of their sexuality; (c) men are naturally strong and heroic; (d) men have non-domestic jobs; (e) overweight men have negative characteristics” (p. 28). In terms of the depiction of girls and women: “(a) a woman’s appearance is valued more than her intellect; (b) women are helpless and in need of protection; (c) women are domestic and likely to marry; (d) overweight women are ugly, unpleasant and unmarried” (p. 30). The authors of this research also find that Disney movies often give “mixed messages”, where “acts of bravery or independence on the part of a female character are often followed by a ‘twist’ in the plot that places her in a one-down position to a male (e.g. Beauty and the Beast, The Little Mermaid)” (p. 38).

25This investigation also shows that, in the sample of movies analysed, no same-sex relationships are portrayed (Towbin, et al., 2008, p. 33). This very fact leads to the next part of this chapter, which explores the notions of heterosexism and heteronormativity.

Heterosexism and heteronormativity

26Among the specific characteristics attributed to notions of masculinity and femininity, specific indications of sexuality and sexual orientation are also present. According to Butler (2004), “sexuality is one way cultural meanings are carried, through both the operation of norms and the peripheral modes of their undoing” (p. 15). She states that gender does not determine sexuality: the latter does not directly derive from the former (p. 16).

27There is a widespread assumption perpetuated in our society that heterosexuality is the only possible sexuality. The mechanism that relies on this assumption is called heterosexism, and it “constitutes a principle of vision and division of the social world, which articulates the exclusive promotion of heterosexuality to the exclusion of homosexuality” (Tin, 2003, p. 208). It is based on the notion of heteronormativity, which is defined here as the “vision for which institutionalised heterosexuality constitutes the standard to define which social relationships are possible and legitimate” (Ingraham, 1999).

28Heterosexism is strongly connected to the notion of homophobia, namely a general hostility towards people who desire individuals of the same sex (Borrillo, 2000, p. 26). Homophobia takes different forms, which lie on a continuum of different types of violence, some more explicit than others, ranging from symbolic and moral, to physical and institutional violence (Dayer, 2013, p. 117). Biphobic and transphobic behaviours and actions are expressed in similar ways. The system of exclusion based on heterosexism affects all those individuals who depart from the established codes that construct masculinity and femininity (Dayer, 2013, p. 117). In other words, mechanisms of discrimination derive from a system based on heteronormativity: this is another important reason why it is necessary to deconstruct traditional gender norms.

29The first part of this chapter provided a number of definitions and clarified the terms related to the notion of gender and its many interrelated aspects. Moreover, it highlighted some of the ways in which the categories of masculinity and femininity are constructed and reinforced at different levels in society, for example through books, movies, advertisements, merchandise, and societal expectations developed on the grounds of one’s biological sex.

30In the following chapter, and in the rest of this book, I specifically focus on these issues in an educational context, emphasising the power of education in reinforcing social norms and its consequent potential to deconstruct them.

Dimensions and dynamics of gender issues in education

  • 4 See on p. 65 for a specific overview of the structure of the Italian educational system.

31Education can take different forms: “the purposes and methods of education continue to raise philosophical, political and ethical debates; and indeed the boundaries of the application of the term (i.e. what counts as education) remain contentious” (Skelton, Francis, & Smulyan, 2006, p. 7). In this investigation, focus is placed mainly on the notion of formal education, within educational institutions, through pre-primary education and secondary education.4

32The consideration of gender issues in education is undoubtedly fraught with a variety of difficulties. This stems from the multitude of dynamics that come into play within this framework. One of the problems of gender research in education in itself is to find a way “to analyse gendered classroom behaviour without reference to ‘girls’ and ‘boys’ that evokes their biological sex category” (Skelton, Francis, & Smulyan, 2006, p. 15). As a researcher, it is always particularly difficult and paradoxical to address the problems of categorisation, while categorisation itself can be useful, and somewhat necessary, when carrying out an investigation.

33Inequality in access to education for boys and girls is generally the first issue considered at an international level when examining the relationship between gender and education. In fact, the education of girls and women has become a development priority for several international organisations, such as the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (Unesco) and the World Bank. These organisations have developed, especially in the last decade of the twentieth century, a number of gender-responsive education policies and strategies, conceptualising and framing the notions of gender, education and equality (Peppin Vaughan, 2010). The main objective of these policies has been to value girls’ education as a contribution to economic growth and development (Peppin Vaughan, 2010), making it an especially relevant issue in developing countries. For the purpose of this research, I do not take this issue directly into account, since this investigation is centred on the Italian context, where girls’ net enrolment rate is 93.59% (as of 2012) in pre-primary education and 97.22% (as of 2013) at the primary level (UNESCO Institute for Statistics, 2016).

34In the first section (“The reality within the classroom”), I deal directly with the reality in the classroom by observing the way gender stereotypes and norms are constructed and reinforced, and by looking at the hostile environment often built as a consequence of these dynamics. Furthermore, the first section brings to light the way this reality translates into students’ educational outcomes. In the second section (“Engaging with gender issues in education”, p. 52), I explore some of the ways in which education can function as a means to deconstruct gender norms and even relations based on power.

The reality within the classroom

35As discussed above, stereotypes are constructed and reinforced in a plurality of shapes starting at a child’s young age. I engage here with the ways in which the school system contributes directly to the construction of gender norms. In fact, power relations that “impregnate” families, the political system, the private sector and the media also “impregnate” the school system (Collet, 2016, p. 33).

Teachers’ expectations and hidden curriculum

36Gender norms are constructed and reinforced already at a pre-primary school level. Professionals in childcare centres involuntarily activate certain stereotypes, for example leaving more space to young boys and accepting their behaviour even when it is disruptive, while being more intolerant towards little girls engaging in similar behaviours (Collet, 2016, p. 31). In this reality and through the influence of the other actors and stimuli surrounding them, as it was outlined in the previous section of this chapter, when children enter the school system they have already assimilated the functioning of the gender codes (Collet, 2016, p. 32). Actual competences as well as the perceived competences of boys and girls differ already the moment they enter school (Kriesi & Buchmann, 2015, p. 123).

37A number of studies have shown that school tends to transmit values and beliefs through what is generally referred to as the hidden curriculum, which implicitly indicates that girls and boys are not equal when it comes to educational processes (Fassa, 2014, p. 69). This hidden curriculum is manifested for example through teachers’ responses and reactions to specific behaviours, and through the reflection of their expectations on students. The Pygmalion Effect (Rosenthal & Jacobson, 1968) is central in this sense. Rosenthal and Jacobson carried out an experiment where students in a classroom were asked to take an IQ test: the researchers then leaked (or rather pretended to accidentally leak) to the teachers a number of names of students with a higher IQ score; however, in reality, they disclosed simply a randomly selected sample. At the end of the academic year, Rosenthal and Jacobson had students take other tests, recording that those same students that had previously been randomly selected scored significantly higher than they had before. This experiment intended to show the effects of teachers’ expectations on students, which are proven to be particularly strong in an educational context (Duru-Bellat, 2001, p. 330).

38Teachers have a tendency to base their expectations on specific criteria, such as sex and students’ ethnic and social background. Social relationships in schools tend to be “strongly bound to biological differences between the sexes, which were modeled on practical gender role expectations derived from eighteenth and nineteenth-century accounts of citizenship” (Dillabough, 2006, p. 48). In this context,

these expectations, based on these inevitably stereotyped representations of the students that are inclined to succeed and to fail, contribute to the reproduction of statistical regularities on which they themselves are based, because they tend to stimulate the students that are already ‘promised’ a certain achievement. (Duru‑Bellat, 2001, p. 330)

39In simpler terms: expectations influence behaviours, which then confirm the initial expectations (Payet & Rufin, 2015, p. 46); “when we expect certain behaviours of others, we are likely to act in ways that make the expected behaviour more likely to occur” (Rosenthal & Babad, 1985). Educational accomplishments reveal themselves not to be the results of students’ innate competences, but the result of teachers’ expectations, which function as self-fulfilling prophecies (Duru-Bellat, 2001, p. 330).

40Teachers tend to expect certain positive results from girls’ efforts in education, while considering boys as full of potential but too immature to put enough effort into their educational endeavours (Collet, 2016, p. 34). In an academic context, gender stereotypes are reflected in the conception of girls as particularly good in subjects such as languages and literature, while boys are seen as being more competent in mathematics and scientific subjects (Kriesi & Buchmann, 2015). In fact, based on these stereotypes, boys tend to be oriented more strongly towards scientific subjects (Nidegger, 2008, p. 51). This divergence in expectations becomes evident when exploring specific educational outcomes and the related external results, which, in fact, are the focus of a latter part of this chapter.

The role of textbooks

41The hidden curriculum is not implemented solely through teachers’ attitudes and self-fulfilling expectations; it is in fact also expressed through textbooks themselves. As Taylor (2003) underlines, “children’s books present a microcosm of ideologies, values and beliefs from the dominant culture” (p. 301). As in the case of traditional fairy tales, as described in the previous chapter, children’s textbooks also contain asymmetric and stereotypical social representations. Biemmi (2015) states that “stories and their characters have a considerable impact on the perceptions that children create about themselves and the world around them” (p. 19). Textbooks have a special influence because they are presented in a somewhat authoritative context: the school itself (Biemmi, 2015).

42Elhadad and Berton-Schmitt (2012) examine mathematics textbooks published in France using both quantitative and qualitative analysis, and provide an example of the role of textbooks in the construction and reinforcement of gender norms. In their analysis, they find a strong numerical under-representation of women. Moreover, they find a lack of differentiation in the representations of the few female characters present in these books: women scientists were most often depicted as laboratory assistants or archaeologists. Furthermore, they find that the illustrations most often represented women in romantic interactions or in the social roles traditionally attributed to them (Elhadad & Berton-Schmitt, 2012). These elements within mathematics textbooks contribute to the message that this is a subject “for boys”.

43Biemmi (2015) analyses textbooks in the Italian context. She highlights that the issue of sexism in textbooks was taken into account in the country only in the mid-1980s. This occurred through two major research projects published by the Presidency of the Council of Ministers. Sabatini (1987) undertook the first one, focusing on the notion of linguistic sexism:

The Italian language, like many others, is based on an anthropocentric principle: man is the parameter around which the linguistic universe rotates and organises itself. A paradigmatic example: the very word “man” has a double meaning because it can refer to both the “male of the species” and also the “species in general”, while the word “woman” refers only to the “female of the species”. (p. 24)

44This research demonstrates the presence of a clear discrepancy between the adjectives associated with males and females: with adjectives such as “sweet”, “delicate” and “gentle” associated with girls, and words such as “bold” and “powerful” used in reference to boys (Sabatini, 1987, p. 33). Furthermore, Pace’s (1986) research on the images in primary school textbooks adds to the issue of interest, finding that “women [were] relegated to the traditional positions of busy housewives and at times- being the ultimate concession- of charity workers, and assigned to the role of mothers, according to obsolete clichés” (p. 11).

45Biemmi (2015) emphasises a mostly dominant lack of further research in the following years, until the creation of the “Polite Project for Equal Opportunity in Textbooks” in 1998. The fundamental objective of this project was to promote cultural reflection in teaching and publishing, and to “rethink textbooks so that men and women, protagonists of culture, history, politics and science, would appear in the textbooks without gender discrimination” (Biemmi, 2015, p. 18). It was Biemmi herself who carried out research to show that the objective of the Polite project had yet to be attained (Biemmi, 2015).

46Biemmi’s investigation yields interesting results. First of all, one of the most obvious elements is a clear majority of male characters playing a leading role. In her words, “young and adult females may not be wholly invisible, but they are certainly obscured by the stronger male presence” (p. 21). Moreover, this is also found to hold true among the secondary characters of the stories (p. 21). The representation of characters in professions also adds an interesting dimension for exploration. Overall in the division of labour represented, male characters were those most often depicted in a professional role (p. 22). Male characters are portrayed as scientists, writers, doctors, poets, journalists, engineers, explorers, architects, orchestra conductors, etc; girls are represented mainly as teachers and housewives, or, alternatively, witches, fairies and diviners: “it is clear that the texts examined do not provide ‘equal employment opportunities’ for pupils of both sexes” (p. 22).

47Like Sabatini in her 1987 analysis of the language and adjectives used in school textbooks, Biemmi also finds that

males are described on the basis of adjectives that sum up positive qualities or otherwise positively connoted in our culture (strength, courage, virtue, wisdom), while the attributes associated with females more often have a negative connotation (e.g. vanity) or denote weakness and fragility. (2015, p. 23)

  • 5 The acronym LGBTI – which stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex – is most oft (...)

48Furthermore, textbooks contribute to the isolation of LGBTI 5 pupils, by reinforcing heteronormativity through a strong lack of representation of LGBTI families and people (ILGA‑Europe, 2018).

Gender-based violence

49The rise of gender-based violence constitutes an important problem in classrooms, as it can take the form not only of physical violence, but also of psychological types of violence, such as insults, disparagement, humiliation and threats (Collet, 2011, p. 79). Gender-based violence constitutes a clear example of the danger of reinforced social norms that establish a hierarchy of the “masculine” and the “feminine”.

50The construction of virility has a fundamental role (Collet, 2011, p. 79). Especially during adolescence, young boys are pressured to comply with characteristics that can confirm their belonging to what Connell calls “the hegemonic ideals of masculinity”: physical strength, sexual power, superiority over women, interest in being transgressive (Connell, 2005). The construction of masculinity within this framework involves processes of affirmation of virility and exclusion of the feminine. It is, however, important to specify that this exclusion of the feminine does not concern solely the oppression of girls, it also concerns boys who do not express signs of virility or who manifest signs that are typically considered as feminine (Collet, 2011, p. 82). This distinction is particularly important, especially to underline the fact that gender-based violence and the asymmetry of power relations are not matters that concern women exclusively.

51We often hear about “bullying”, which involves “an imbalance of power and can include teasing, taunting, use of hurtful nicknames, physical violence or social exclusion” (Unesco, 2011, p. 11). It is necessary to add to this definition its more recent version: cyber bullying. This constitutes “harassment through e-mail, cell-phones, text messages and defamatory websites” (Unesco, 2011, p. 11). In recent years there has been more awareness about this form of harassment. The 2011 National School Climate Survey (NSCS), carried out in schools in the United States, showed that “when asked how often they were harassed or threatened by students at their school via electronic mediums (e.g. text messages, e-mails, instant messages, or posting on Internet sites such as Facebook), more than half (55.2%) of LGBT [lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender] students reported experiencing this type of harassment in the past year” (Kosciw, Palmer, Kull, & Greytak, 2011, p. 26).

52The psychological violence perpetuated through bullying can take the form of insults, teasing and side-lining (Collet, 2011, p. 82). Insults can have a very strong effect on their victim (Dayer, 2013, p. 118) and a certain hierarchy and classification are immediately built up, where the perpetrator is assigned a role of superiority. Insults not only devalue and undermine the victims, but they also have the power to hurt them, causing them to lose their self-esteem and to consider themselves different from others (Dayer, 2013, p. 122). The power of insults also lies in the fact that they have no limit, since they can take place at any moment of a school day (Dayer, 2013, p. 121).

53Insults are sometimes hidden behind jokes and laughter, and specifically under a form of humour that Collet defines as “hostile humour” (Collet, 2014, p. 139). This can be expressed by one group against another, or specifically against individuals. It is often used by youths as a weapon against those who are identified as weak or those whom they intend to weaken (Collet, 2014, p. 132). It is most often used to marginalise groups of people that distance themselves (consciously or unconsciously) from gender norms, such as boys who do not live up to the expectation of virility, and girls who are not as discreet as they are expected to be or who exhibit behaviours that are defined and identified as constitutive of “bad reputations” (Collet, 2014, p. 132).

54A fundamental problem is that teachers do not know how to respond effectively to these insults, and to protect the students effectively in this hostile climate. In examining the issue in a French context, Pasquier (2014, p. 214) points out that, although legislation specifically designed to combat expressions of homophobia does exist, teachers do not seem to be widely aware of it, and therefore it is rarely applied in educational establishments (p. 197). This chapter focuses on the different issues that come into play when speaking of gender within the school and the classroom. The following chapter addresses the way this environment translates into students’ educational outcomes and external results.

Educational outcomes and students’ performance

55The reality within the classroom created by a hostile environment and the construction and reinforcement of stereotypes are also reflected in students’ educational outcomes. In fact, all these elements build the conditions for differences and gaps in educational outcomes.

56The Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA), established by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) in 1997, provides an investigation of students’ performance. The objective of this investigation, carried out every three years, is to evaluate competences and skills as developed by students of 15 years of age at an international level, specifically among the 72 participating countries and economies, in the core subjects of science, reading and mathematics (OECD, 2016b). In each round, one of the core fields is tested in greater detail, allowing for a better comparison of performance over the years. For example, the 2015 PISA investigation focused on science as the major area of assessment. The study found that in science, on average, the number of top performers is higher among boys than among girls (2016c, p. 4). However, PISA found that science is the subject where mean gender differences are the smallest and that these differences vary significantly across countries (2016c, p. 6). As the OECD specifies, “this indicates that gender disparities in performance do not stem from innate differences in aptitude, but rather from factors that parents, teachers, policy makers and opinion leaders can influence” (2016c, p. 6). In reading skills, the gender gap is particularly evident in favour of girls, even if in 2015 it had narrowed by 12 points since 2009 (2016c, p. 4)6.

57Gender imbalances are evident also at the level of tertiary education: more women than men are now tertiary graduates, but women are less likely to enter and graduate from more advanced levels of tertiary education, such as PhD programmes (OECD, 2016a). Moreover, despite certain developments in the last decade, women remain under-represented in fields such as science and engineering, and over-represented in others, such as education and health (2016a). In 2014, on average in OECD countries and economies, “three times more men than women graduated with a degree in engineering and four times more women than men graduated with a degree in the field of education” (2016a, p. 29).

58Even if girls tend to have better overall results than boys in school, their vocational and professional integration is more problematic (Couchot-Schiex, 2016, p. 17). Their educational achievement does not translate into their career paths: women in the workforce are still at the centre of occupational segregation, both vertically (under-representation of women in leadership positions) and horizontally (under-representation of women in specific sectors) (Dayer, 2014, p. 43). Paradoxically, girls do not manage to transform their educational success into professional success in the same way as boys do (Fassa, 2014, p. 69). This reality provides a more holistic understanding of the consequences of an unbalanced educational system that creates, amplifies and reinforces inequalities.

59Furthermore, other factors come into play, and it is important not to forget to undertake data analyses from an intersectional perspective. Several studies show, for example, that the experiences of LGBTI students in education differ from those of students that identify as heterosexual. In particular, these studies demonstrate that a hostile school environment negatively affects LGBTI students’ performances (Kosciw, et al., 2013; Robinson & Espelage, 2011). Robinson and Espelage (2011) show that in middle and high school, “youth who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or questioning (LGBTQ) are at a greater risk of suicidal thoughts, suicide attempts, victimisation by peers, and elevated levels of unexcused absences from school” (p. 315).

60Students’ performances and experiences may be related to other factors and characteristics, such as socio-economic background, race, country of origin, or disability. Within the scope of this research, we unfortunately do not have the opportunity to explore these intersectional dimensions further. It is however fundamental to highlight them.

Engaging with gender issues in education

61The previous section outlined the complexity of interconnected questions that arise from an investigation of the school system in relation to gender issues. Because of this, it is necessary to operate directly within schools themselves, in order to engage with these issues and to integrate a gender approach into education.

62In the same way in which education contributes to the construction of gender norms, it is possible to exploit its potential to deconstruct them. It is necessary to effectively contribute to diffusing a common culture based on equality among students, to help them become adults who will be free to make choices regardless of their sex (Collet, 2016, p. 69). In order to do so, it would be important to transform the way subjects are taught, to apply a number of different didactic parameters that can be used to fight against the reproduction of gender-based inequalities (Couchot-Schiex, 2016, p. 19).

63We should think of education as a means to help us understand the world around us, to determine not only the boundaries of our freedom of action, but also the tools with which to change our reality (Marzano, 2015, p. 127). Education is meant to create and diffuse culture, which also entails helping children to find the words with which to describe what they are going through (p. 127). Education is therefore fundamental to the development of critical thinking, which in turn can allow for the deconstruction of prevailing prejudices and injustices (p. 128).

International organisations’ guidelines

64United Nations agencies such as Unesco, together with the European Commission and the European Institute for Gender Equality (EIGE), provide different recommendations on how to deal with these issues at different levels of education and through different methodologies. This chapter deals with some examples.

65“Stopping Violence in Schools: a Guide for Teachers” is an example of Unesco’s effort to combat violence in educational contexts, with a particular focus on gender-based violence: “This guide was created to bring about substantial changes by assisting school communities and the broader international community to respond to violence and implement measures to prevent it” (Unesco, 2011, p. 5). Unesco tackles education through a human rights-based approach, which intends to promote student-centred and participatory teaching practices and to create a safe learning environment. The power of education in the socialisation of values is particularly central. Programmes designed to address and fight gender-based violence and discrimination, in fact, not only have the potential to prevent them specifically within schools, but can also contribute to preventing these mechanisms outside of the classroom. An approach such as the one presented by Unesco “lays the groundwork for a culture of peace by fostering respect for differences, which is critical to violence prevention” (2011, p. 7).

66Unesco (2011) outlines ten different actions that teachers can undertake in order to combat violence in schools: (a) advocating a holistic approach involving students, school staff, parents and the community; (b) making students partners in preventing violence; (c) using constructive discipline techniques and methods; (d) being an active and effective force to stop bullying; (e) building students’ resilience; (f) being a positive role model by speaking out against sexual and gender-based violence; (g) being an advocate for school safety mechanisms; (h) providing safe and welcoming spaces for students; (i) learning violence prevention and conflict resolutions skills and teaching them to students; (l) recognising violence and discrimination against students with disabilities, and those from indigenous, minority and other marginalised communities (pp. 15‑23).

67Moreover, Unesco identifies gender equality as one of the two overarching priorities of its mission (2015, p. 16). Including gender equality within the framework of global citizenship education, Unesco (2015) highlights that girls and boys learn about gendered attitudes, roles and behaviours at school as well as at home. It is in this context that global citizenship education

can support gender equality through the development of knowledge, skills, values and attitudes that promote the equal value of women and men, engender respect and enable young people to critically question gendered roles and expectations that are harmful and/or encourage gender-based discrimination and stereotyping. (Unesco, 2015, p. 16)

68In “Promoting gender equality through textbooks. A methodological guide”, Unesco (2009) also emphasises the importance of fostering gender equality through textbooks. In fact, as highlighted in the previous sections of this chapter, textbooks have the tendency (and power) to reinforce gender roles and to consequently reproduce the asymmetry of power relations in society. However, as well as having such an effect of reproducing inequalities, textbooks can be used as powerful means to socialise values based on equality and non-discrimination and to deconstruct gender norms:

Under a quality education policy the textbook is understood as an educational tool of prime importance, being instrumental to culture, to educational attainment and to in-service teacher training. It is also a tool for social change because it disseminates universal values. […] [For example,] it is essential for textbooks to be covered by policies which respect and include the rights of girls and women for their full enjoyment of a good-quality education. (Unesco, 2009, p. 22)

69The European Commission, through the research work carried out by the Eurydice Network, has provided a number of possible measures for tackling gender inequalities. Among these measures, Eurydice (2009) recommends revising school textbooks and display materials; focusing on teacher-led work and offering greater learning support to students; providing practical legal guidance to teachers and school managers; and providing appropriate information to the staff of educational institutions regarding methods to build an appropriate school climate for students (p. 110).

70Moreover, the Council of Europe’s “Istanbul Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence” 7 identifies education as one of the most useful means to succeed in the fight against gender-based violence. Article 14 of the Convention, in particular, states that:

Parties shall take, where appropriate, the necessary steps to include teaching material on issues such as equality between women and men, non-stereotyped gender roles, mutual respect, non-violent conflict resolution in interpersonal relationships, gender-based violence against women and the right to personal integrity, adapted to the evolving capacity of learners, in formal curricula and at all levels of education. (Council of Europe, 2011)

71The World Health Organisation’s Regional Office for Europe (WHO), together with the German Federal Centre for Health Education (BZgA) published in 2010 a framework for policy makers, educational and health authorities and specialists concerning “Standards for sexuality education in Europe”. This paper intends to break from the traditional focus of sexuality education on the potential risks of sexuality, such as unintended pregnancies and sexually transmitted infections. Instead, it intends to provide “a holistic approach based on an understanding of sexuality as an area of human potential, [which] helps children and young people to develop essential skills to enable them to self-determine their sexuality and their relationships at the various developmental stages” (WHO & BZgA, 2010, p. 5). The educational projects taken into consideration in this investigation do not engage directly with issues of sexuality and sexual and reproductive rights. However, sexuality education could be considered as part of a framework for integrating a gender approach into education, since it can address issues of sexual orientation and empowerment, among others. Some specific references to this 2010 document are brought to light in the course of the analysis.

72The European Institute for Gender Equality (EIGE) sees these initiatives as part of a broader effort that States should undertake to integrate a gender perspective into educational policies and design gender-responsive policies. This Agency of the European Union specifically speaks of gender mainstreaming as a strategy for achieving gender equality that involves “the integration of a gender perspective into the preparation, design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of policies, regulatory measures and spending programmes, with the view to promoting equality between women and men, and combating discrimination” (EIGE, 2017).

Inclusive pedagogy

73One of the ways to successfully integrate a gender perspective in education is to transform the way subjects are taught, to apply a number of different didactic parameters that can be used to fight against the reproduction of gender-based inequalities (Couchot-Schiex, 2016, p. 19). Solar (1998) speaks of an inclusive pedagogy (in French pédagogie de l’équité ou pédagogie inclusive), which should be constructed in all aspects of education and training. This should be intended to move towards “action for the transformation of the social division of resources, power and knowledge” (Solar, 1998, p. 28). In order to build a framework for this inclusive pedagogy, Solar takes into account four areas of focus: (a) silence/speech; (b) omission/memory; (c) passivity/ active participation; (d) powerlessness/assumption of power. She thus argues that inclusive education intends to break silence through speech, omission through memory, passivity through active participation and powerlessness through a takeover of power (p. 31). Solar believes that the framework of these four dimensions should be the basis of future efforts in this matter.

74Undoubtedly, the application of these notions is fraught with difficulties and complications. For example, Taylor (2003) underlines the difficulty in making students engage with gender stereotypes. In particular, when it comes to gendered behaviour, he states that students “are inclined to believe that differential outcomes in life for women and men are due to natural or innate differences (particularly differences related to biology) rather than the processes of socialisation and social forces” (p. 300). He further suggests that one possible method to get students to learn about these stereotypes and their process of social construction is to have them engage in qualitative analysis (p. 300).

75Lafortune (1998) promotes a feminist approach in education in the context of mathematics classes. In particular, she addresses three ways in which it is important to intervene when teaching mathematics. Firstly, she underlines the necessity (1) of taking into account the situation of girls and women in mathematics. A simple reference to women who have contributed to the development of mathematics would constitute a valuable first step. Moreover, it would be important to explicitly criticise the prejudices and biases of the history of mathematics (Lafortune, 1998). Secondly, (2) the demystification of mathematics should be emphasised. More precisely, it would be important to deconstruct the misconceptions related to the subject, for example by showing that it is not as complex as people tend to believe, and by deconstructing the stereotype of mathematicians as people that devote their life exclusively to this field (Lafortune, 1998). Finally, it would be useful (3) to take into account the elements of “affectivity” when learning mathematics (Lafortune, 1998), directly tackling three aspects of the affective dimension that come into play: anxiety, self-confidence and motivation (Lafortune, 1998).

76Building on her own research in the specific context of mathematics, Lafortune (1998) elaborated a framework for an inclusive pedagogy to be applied when teaching all subjects in educational establishments, by outlining seven fundamental recommendations: (a) to use differentiated documents so that everyone can be concerned and represented; (b) to react to words and attitudes that can devalue and undermine a category of students; (c) to value emotions, creativity, intuition and imagination in all subject-specific learning processes; (d) to use examples and to propose activities that can interest and involve the entirety of the student body; (e) to demystify disciplines, the people who teach them, and their learning processes; (f) to use means to allow everyone to speak up and participate, and to feel comfortable doing so; (g) to build an environment that allows for learning processes based on cooperative models, rather than competitive ones (Lafortune, 1998).

77Davis and Steiger (1993, p. 67) built on Lafortune’s research in the context of physics lessons, with the intent to implement strategies to improve girls’ experience in the classroom. For example, one of these strategies consisted in responding to one of the reasons students reportedly tend to abandon scientific programmes, namely, solitude (Davis & Steiger, 1993, p. 76). Davis and Steiger (1993) recommend building a support mechanism among students, asking teachers to also consider teamwork as part of the evaluation (p. 77).

78Within the framework of educational programmes, the teacher is not a neutral actor: he or she has incorporated differentiated values, including gender stereotypes (Couchot-Schiex, 2016, p. 19). The choices that guide the selection, planning and conception of objects at the centre of students’ work require the teacher to be particularly vigilant and careful (Couchot-Schiex, 2016, p. 19). Because of this, teacher training is absolutely essential, and it needs to integrate a gender approach to education. As the European Commission underlines, “all teacher education programmes should have a core module on gender equality. Teachers should be assessed in their equality practices during pre-service and in-service education programmes” (Eurydice, 2009, p. 111). This is not the case in the Italian context, however, where, overall, universities in the country rarely engage with gender studies (Bencivenga, 2012, p. 24).

79Moreover, for the construction of an effective inclusive pedagogy, the system itself would need to reflect equality. However, the preponderance of women in the teaching profession constitutes an additional reproduction of the division of gender roles. This gender imbalance seems to be common to many parts of the world (OECD, 2014). As the findings of the TALIS research (OECD, 2014) show, 68% of all teachers across the countries under investigation are female. In the specific case of Italy, 79% of all teachers are women. The proportion of female teachers tends to be higher in primary education (OECD, 2014).

80The idea that women have maternal instincts and that they are the ones in charge of the “care” of children is a particularly strong reason behind these numbers, because of a perceived notion of women as the ones that naturally have a desire to protect children and to respond to their material needs (Gianini Belotti, 2016, p. 132). It would be important to strive to change this structure, as the mere presence of men and women among the educational staff from the pre-primary school level on would contribute to removing the “crystallisation” of the feminine and masculine roles (Gianini Belotti, 2016, p. 143). Moreover, paradoxically, women are also less likely to become school managers, “even though principals are often recruited from the ranks of teachers” (OECD, 2016a, p. 31).

81Looking at the construction of an effective inclusive pedagogy and the integration of a comprehensive gender approach to education as an ideal that societies should strive to achieve, different countries have made efforts along these lines, following the guidelines of international organisations and recommendations of the European Commission. These efforts include not only specific references to educational projects, but also the elaboration of strategies to deal more broadly with gender issues at different levels of society (e.g. same-sex civil unions, campaigns to fight discrimination based on sexual orientation, initiatives to promote gender equality and understand asymmetric power relations between men and women, etc.).

Notes

1 A stereotype is “an over-simplified mental image of some category of person, institution or event which is shared, in essential features by large numbers of people […] Stereotypes are commonly, but not necessarily, accompanied by prejudice, i.e. by a favourable or unfavourable predisposition toward any member of the category in question” (Stallybrass, 1977, p. 601).

2 http://pointlesslygenderedproducts.tumblr.com

3 Tumblr is a social networking website, founded in 2007, that allows the sharing of data mainly in form of multimedia in blog-like personal pages.

4 See on p. 65 for a specific overview of the structure of the Italian educational system.

5 The acronym LGBTI – which stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex – is most often preferred and extensively used in key documents by organisations such as ILGA-Europe. It is fundamental to highlight that the struggles of each group covered by this umbrella term are unique and would need to be taken into account separately. In the course of this research, other acronyms such as LGBT and LGBTQ might be used. This is because of the way these are referred to in the documents taken into consideration. In every other instance, the term LGBTI will be used.

6 The full OECD report can be accessed at http://www.oecd.org/pisa

7 The full text of the Convention can be accessed at http://www.coe.int/en/web/conventions/full-list/-/conventions/rms/090000168008482e

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