1. Gender Sensitivity Training in India
Issue
Background
Proposed Research
Policy Implications
While India is making significant progress in primary and secondary educational outcomes, there continue to be significant concerns about high dropout rates, especially among girls.1
Country gender indicators give context to the situation. India continues to rank low on the Gender Inequality Index (GII), Gender Gap Index (GGI), and Social Institutions and Gender Index (SIGI).2
In order to combat the dropout rates in India, current gender norms must change.
According to a 2012 UNESCO report3,4, three of the reasons girls drop out of school in India are related to gendered issues: early marriage, safety, and poor infrastructure.
In an effort to change existing gender norms and reduce school dropout rates, the National Curriculum for Teacher Education (NCTE) has recently changed its curriculum for pre-service teachers to include gender studies.10 Similarly, a variety of gender-sensitivity programs have emerged across India to improve educational and health outcomes. Many of these programs have demonstrated an increase to test scores and attendance, and reduce dropouts through decreased premarital sex and early marriage.11,12,13
Gender-sensitivity training for teachers specifically shows promise in improving gender norms and reducing dropout, there are still many “unknowns” in program descriptions. For example, few program descriptions mentioned the duration of the training, nor do they provide details about the content or objectives of the training curriculum. Even less information is available about whether such activities have had an impact on teachers’ attitudes or student dropout rates.14
My proposed research is to use existing gender sensitivity training provided by UNESCO15 to train teachers to become more aware of gendered issues and to implement learnings in their classrooms. The training includes 10 modules. Measurements will be two-fold: (1) collecting data on teachers’ gender attitudes through a survey using the Gender Equitable Measurement (GEM) scale16 and (2) collecting student perceptions of their teacher’s attitude toward gender through a survey using a modified version of the GEM scale.
To account for cultural customs that may have differing views on approaching gender equality, the schools in which teachers will participate in this research will go through an application process. Each school that applies will be categorized by location, urban/rural, and size. All teachers at schools that are selected through a random stratification strategy will undergo a 20-hour gender-sensitivity training by UNESCO staff.
To measure the impact of the training, there will be both a treatment group where teachers receive the gender-sensitivity training and a control group that receives no training.
Gender-sensitivity training is not the silver bullet of restructuring gender norms in India. Linking teacher gender-sensitivity training with improved attitudes toward gender will enable other studies to more easily demonstrate the impact of such training on educational outcomes. Many of the studies mentioned previously use gender-sensitivity training as one part of a more holistic approach to gender equality or other educational and health outcomes. This study has the potential to isolate the training intervention to clearly demonstrate its effect on teachers’ attitudes toward gender.
Most of the world, including the Government of India17, are fighting for women’s empowerment and gender equality. However, it is important to note that some cultures in India may have differing views on the gender roles. In order to have a lasting impact on gender roles, these groups must also be brought into the gender discussion.
Indicator
India’s Global Rank (year)
Source
Gender Inequality Index (GII)
138/148 (2012)
United Nations Development Program (UNDP)
Gender Gap Index (GGI)
105/136 (2013)
World Economic Forum (WEF)
Social Institutions and Gender Index (SIGI)
56/86 (2012)
Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD)
References
1 Sahni, U. (2016, October 07). Primary Education in India: Progress and Challenges | Brookings Institution. Retrieved April 27, 2017, from
2 Pawar, S. (2015, December 17). Gender Inequality Index Places India at a Miserable 130th. Retrieved April 27, 2017, from
3 UNESCO, U. (2012). Global education digest 2012. Opportunities lost: The impact of grade repetition and early school leaving.
4 Bala, N. (2014, August 21). The 3 Biggest Reasons that India's Girls Drop Out of School | American India Foundation. Retrieved April 27, 2017, from
5 Brides, G. N. (2017). India - Child Marriage Around The World. Girls Not Brides. Retrieved April 28, 2017, from
6 Leach, F., & Sitaram, S. (2007). Sexual harassment and abuse of adolescent schoolgirls in South India. Education, Citizenship and Social Justice, 2(3),
7 Gohaini, M. P. (2015, March 12). Gender-based violence prevents millions of school children from fulfilling their dreams - Times of India. Retrieved April 28, 2017, from
8 Chatterjee, R. (2016, May 12). In India, access to toilets remains a huge problem - worst of all for women and girls. Retrieved April 28, 2017, from
9 Klasing, A., & Smaak, A. (2017, April 19). "Going to the Toilet When You Want". Retrieved April 28, 2017, from
10 Pednekar, P. (2014, December 22). Gender studies to be taught in teacher training modules. Retrieved April 28, 2017, from
11 Appleton, S. (1995). Exam determinants in Kenyan primary schools: Determinants and gender differences.
12 Mensch, B. S., Clark, W. H., Lloyd, C. B., & Erulkar, A. S. (2001). Premarital sex, schoolgirl pregnancy, and school quality in rural Kenya. Studies in family planning, 32(4),
13 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),
14 Lloyd, C. B., & Young, J. (2009). New lessons: the power of educating adolescent girls: a Girls Count report on adolescent girls.
15 Lamptey, A., Gaidzanwa, R. B., Mulugeta, E., Samra, S., & Shumba, O. (2015). A Guide for Gender Equality in Teacher Education Policy and Practices (Rep.). Paris, France: UNESCO. doi:
16 Nanda, G. (2014). Compendium of gender scales  Washington, DC: FHI, 360.
17 Mukhopadhyay, A. (2017, March 27). India's Fight Against Gender-Based Violence. Retrieved April 28, 2017, from
Timeline 01 03 02
Baseline
Survey
Intervention
Endline
School
Year
Ends
Begins
Over 12,000 Rape
Cases of Children
Up to Age 187
Roughly 30% of
Schools Don’t Have
Usable Toilets9
43% of
Students Dropout
Before Primary
Completion1
47% of Girls
Marry Before
Their 18th
Birthday5
Logic Framework
Inputs
Activities
Outputs
Outcomes
Impact
Teachers
Trainers
Curriculum
Surveys
Research Grant
Train Teachers
Conduct Surveys
# of Teachers Trained
# of Surveys Collected
Increased Teacher Gender Sensitivity
- Reduced
Dropout Rates
Gender-Based Violence