The Portrayal of Women in Arabic Textbooks for Non-Arabic Speakers

Abstract

The portrayal of gender in a textbook is able to influence students’ understanding of the concept of gender equality (GE). The unfair portrayal of women in textbooks will have a negative effect on students’ conceptions of gender. Although some previous studies have found that textbooks portray a fair and constructive picture of women by positioning them on a par with men, other studies have shown that gender inequality still exists in the contents of Arabic textbooks, presenting stereotypical and gender bias. To fill this void, this article uses critical discourse analysis to analyze the content of Arabic textbooks for non-Arabic speakers. It aims at portraying women in Arabic textbooks to non-Arabic speakers. The study findings revealed the tendencies to male firstness by positioning the characters of women being more likely portrayed as subordinates in the Arabic textbooks. In addition, there are imbalances in women portrayal in the visibility, order of mention, and male-to-female ratios in the Arabic textbooks. The results also showed that women in some parts of the Arabic textbooks are also portrayed in a constructive portrayal of having equal rights as men in terms of profession and access to education. This study highlights the importance of the concept of GE in Arabic textbooks to increase social awareness.