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Discuss the historical background to gender disparities in Africa education.

      

Discuss the historical background to gender disparities in Africa education.

  

Answers

Francis
To understand the gender aspect within education in Africa, it is important to appreciate the historical perspective of female education in the continent since female's limited participation in education has historical precedents (Bogonko, 1992).
Non-indigenous education was introduced in Africa through Islam and Christianity. Initially, it was considered unimportant. However, it was later seen as part of the educational development programme for indigenous communities. Consequently, education was used as a vehicle for promoting domesticity. A small number of African women were trained to be "good" housewives and mothers, primarily for the emerging class of male clerks and church officials. Eventually, the notion of the African woman as a dependent housekeeper, one who was economically reliant on the husband, took root. The school curriculum transmitted values of humility, low ambition and wider- estimation of girls' ability in cognitive achievement, social attainment and capacity to work in the public sphere. This type of education was then institutionalized in the curriculum (Bogonko, 1992).
Currently, the curriculum offered in most African schools has changed only minimally in favour of women. A curriculum defines the subjects to be taught and furnishes the general guidance regarding the frequency and duration of instruction. Curricula vary greatly from country to country in terms of which subjects are offered and which ones are emphasized. The curriculum is a social artefact, an outcome of social life as well as a pedagogical device. It is a means of directing learning. What is taught in schools reflects conscious and unconscious decisions by a variety of people acting in particular social and economic contexts, it is, however, important to realize that the organization of the curriculum also includes aspects of learning that are unofficial and unintentional. These are called "hidden curriculum". It has undeclared consequences on how teaching and learning are organized and performed. The hidden curriculum describes those forces which shape the non-academic and unmeasured learning outcomes. It has a set of practices whose ultimate effects might eventually affect the participation and achievement of the recipients.
Such practices include gender ability, grouping and attitude formation. These have had a major impact on the creation of inferiority complexes among female students, thus reinforcing the marginalization of girls and women in education. It can therefore be concluded that right from the onset of female education, school practices and the curriculum offered have failed to address gender concerns and to help eliminate gender biases in education.
francis1897 answered the question on August 22, 2022 at 11:24

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