Achieving Gender Equity: A Case for Science Education in India

Abstract

AbstractGender equity in science education entails that all students of any sex, regardless of their culture, caste, disability, linguistic and ethnic background, be given the required support to become successful in learning science and eventually aspiring to do science in future. In this paper, an analytical framework is used based on the feminist critique of science. It has been seen that girls despite showing high levels of interest in studying science take fewer science courses in colleges. This paper discusses three approaches to accomplish gender equity in science. These three different approaches are based on understanding the role of gender in shaping students’ approaches to science education. These approaches are gender neutral science education on the premise of equality feminism, female-friendly science education based on difference feminism and gender-sensitive science education on the premise of postmodern feminism. It also discusses a few strategies to accomplish gender equity in Indian science classrooms. Also, examples are elucidated from the NCERT science textbooks of 6th and 8th classes for the science teachers to inculcate these ideas while teaching in the classroom to cater to the issue of gender inequity in an Indian science classroom.