Teachers’ Perceptions of Gender Representation in Textbooks: Insights From Sindh, Pakistan

Abstract

Gender representation in textbooks is of core importance in the classroom as textbooks are at the centre of the classroom in public sector schools in Sindh, Pakistan. This paper investigates teachers’ perceptions regarding the representation of gender in the textbooks. Data was collected through semi-structured interviews with 10 secondary school teachers in Sindh, Pakistan. The results show that most of the teachers conformed to the traditional roles of men and women. Moreover, they emphasised the need to revise textbooks as they thought textbooks had a greater influence on students. It is argued that teachers, other than a few exceptions, appear to be unaware of the influence they have on learners’ perceptions. It is recommended that teacher training need to focus on the role of the teachers with reference to the use of textbooks.