Gender and university: The case of Montenegro

Abstract

Gender, i.e. gender identity is in great extent constructed in the process of education. This paper has the aim of defining social elements, which in the process of education construct category of gender and in this way determine women's engagement in some levels of Montenegrin education. Until the 19th century, there were no institutions in Montenegro, which managed systematic, planned and continuous education (the first spiritual primary male school was established in 1834). Education of female children in Montenegro does not have long tradition (it was first mentioned in 1867 that female children were educated, and this was in non-institutional form). Attitudes towards not educating female children were personal parents' decisions, but did not come from publicly defined social significance for the need of educating female children (it was only in 1914 that the law was brought, according to which education of children was compulsory and it was equalised with education of male children). Nevertheless, abort from law equality, observe by contents, way and quality of education of female children differed from the way and quality of education of male children (girls were trained to become good mothers and housewives (Girls' Institute was founded in Cetinje in 1869)). Even today, in the educational system of Montenegro, there are traces of patriarch traditional matrix seen in the following: the used of gender insensitive language, division on 'male' and 'female'' faculties, models of getting higher degrees and positions at the faculties. According to this, the existing system of education in Montenegro has not sufficiently approached the process of reconstruction of the existing traditional matrixes, which construct males/females. Educational context, particularly university area, should be the place of reconstruction of the 'great story' about the man as the first person in the educational system, on the contrary, in educational system of Montenegro, there are still gender stereotypes. In the paper, we used the method of theoretical analysis of the contents of scientific discussions, debates, and research, which by subject and methodology respond to the given target. Survey method was used in realisation of the field research in which we got empirical data, and some of those data will be interpreted in accordance with the defined aims of the paper.