ERIC Number: EJ1314435
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2021
Pages: 16
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0950-0693
EISSN: N/A
Visual Representations of Women in a Jamaican Science Textbook: Perpetuating an Outdated, Sexist Ideology
International Journal of Science Education, v43 n13 p2169-2184 2021
The gender gap in post-compulsory science education remains a key concern for educators in many countries. Over the last two decades significant effort has been placed in a number of initiatives aimed not only at raising the profile of science in schools, but also at widening female participation. Despite these initiatives, the rate of female participation in science has typically remained below that of males. Although many reasons have been advanced to explain this, visual representations in school science textbooks remain under-researched. Against a background of gender disparity in the Jamaican education system, this article examines the extent to which visual representations in a widely used school science textbook reinforce or ameliorate gender stereotypes. The results indicate that the textbook presents implicit support for gender-biased messages, though in ways that are more subtle than might be supposed. There were a number of ways in which the images did not favour males over females but there were also other ways in which males were more likely to be portrayed as powerful and in high-status 'positions', while females were more likely to be depicted in inferior situations. Such gender representations may affect how students see themselves in relation to science.
Descriptors: Foreign Countries, Textbooks, Science Instruction, Gender Bias, Females, Equal Education, Visual Aids, Textbook Content, Ideology, Social Influences, Semiotics, Cultural Influences
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Jamaica
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A