Gender-based pedagogical inequity: Exploring faculty perspectives in Ethiopia

Abstract

In Ethiopia, women’s access to higher education is a priority for many higher education leaders. Moreover, education access and participation are often measured quantitatively through enrollment, retention, and graduation rates. Often overlooked, however, are qualitative outcomes related to gender. To address this gap in the literature, we explore faculty perspectives on gender inequities in Ethiopian higher education by describing specific challenges to gender-equitable pedagogy and reporting participant-generated recommendations. We used an equity pedagogy framework and thematic analysis to examine qualitative data from interviews with 32 university faculty. We found that participants conflated equality with equity, and thus justified the use of a uniform pedagogy for all students. Barriers to gender equitable pedagogy included: pervasive gender stereotypes, curricula and learning environments centered on male learners, and the perception of “gender issues” as ancillary In relation to this last finding, faculty often viewed “gender issues” as political, societal, or outside the realm of their teaching responsibilities. Based on these findings, we discuss how gender inequity in Ethiopian higher education is systemic and should be approached as such. We conclude the paper with participant-generated recommendations.