Abstract
The aim of this study is to investigate factors relating to the low level of women’s participation in higher education in Khyber Pukhtunkhwah (KP), aparticularly conservative and traditionalist region of Pakistan, adjoining Afghanistan. The data analysis shows that women who succeed in entering higher education are in general from the elite/upper and the upper-middle classes. However, even these elite women face problems relating to particularly conservative understandings and practices that are culturally specific to Pukhtun culture rather than to the actual teachings of Islam, the religion professed by a majority of the people. In addition, attitudes towards women and the language of instruction have implications on women's access to education. More importantly, women of all economic classes have difficulty in making their own decisions and have to seek approval from their families, particularly their male relatives. The paper argues that men (and women) misinterpret teachings of religion, in other words they ‘culturalise’ Islam, instead of Islamising their culture. Drawing upon women's narratives, this study not only investigates factors affecting female participation in higher education in KP, but also gives voice to the traditionally voiceless Pakhtun women and puts on record stories not heard before.
Highlights
Becky Francis (2000a), a British educationist specialising in gender inequalities in the classroom, applying her social constructionist and feminist perspective, argues that gender, though not a fixed entity, is a marker of inequality
This paper explores gender perceptions and experiences of the deprived and silent women of Khyber Pukhtunkhwah (KP) by hearing their voices, thereby recognising their needs and aspirations based upon their own experiences
The present study focused on a group of relatively young women students in KP, and examined their voices to provide a contextual analysis of their experiences
Summary
Becky Francis (2000a), a British educationist specialising in gender inequalities in the classroom, applying her social constructionist and feminist perspective, argues that gender, though not a fixed entity, is a marker of inequality. Patriarchy here in KP, as elsewhere, presents a continuous and an on-going process of producing and reproducing inequalities (Thomas, 1999; Francis, 2000b). This process is definitely an alarming one and requires timely and effective measures to contain it, uproot it, and erase it
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