Curriculum Initiatives
Developing Gender Inclusive Practices in International Schools
By Dallin Bywater, Shekou International School, dbwater@sis.org.cn In 2015, world leaders identified 17 Global Goals for making a better world. Reducing inequalities, and more specifically, achieving gender equality, are two of those essential goals. The Global Goals website aptly declares: “It [gender inequality] is not just a human rights issue; it is a tremendous waste of the world’s human potential.”1 This inequality manifests itself in various forms across the globe, and more specifically, in our international schools. Discrimination, unequal voice and participation, limited leadership opportunities, and gender bias in our education practices are a few forms of gender inequality that can be found. At a first glance, some of the issues seem straightforward to tackle in the education environment: Advocate for equal pay for women. Provide equal education and leadership opportunities for girls. Eliminate child and forced marriages in our communities. Most of us can agree on these targets. But then what about the issue of protecting LGBT+ students from harassment and discrimination? And what about educating teachers, parents, and children about gender identity and gender bias, to promote acceptance of all students so that they can all learn in a safe environment? Depending on the host country and culture, these topics can come with difficult conversations that many educators fear to initiate. No matter how conservative the cultural or school environment, you can take some steps to reduce inequalities, especially gender inequality, in your school. Here are a few tips for working with your school to establish gender inclusive and equitable practices and policies: 1. Know your host laws and culture, and the biases and barriers that come with them. It may be illegal for you to teach certain concepts (ex: gender identity) to students, so you should be aware of the restrictions that exist in your host country before proceeding. Knowing your host culture will help guide your first steps for advocacy. 2. Talk to other international school counselors and professionals in the area who may have some experience with gender inclusive practices. You likely 10 EARCOS Triannual Journal
will learn from the mistakes that others have made on their journey towards greater equality and inclusion in unique cultural environments. 3. Understand your school culture. The level of conservative environment varies from school to school. Whatever the case, it is important to find allies, especially in school leadership, who will support you in your efforts to promote gender inclusion and equality. School culture changes do not come with an individual. Connect your advocating efforts to the Global Goals and school mission so that the advocacy is not a personal crusade, but rather, an attempt to encourage global citizenship and empathy. 4. Gather information about good practices in gender inclusion. A few websites with great ideas that you might consider are: • www.welcomingschools.org • www.genderspectrum.org • www.genderinclusiveschools.org Remember that no website, policy, or guideline will fit your school environment and community perfectly. Adapt what you find to fit the needs of your community. 5. Have a plan for increasing inclusive practices, and be patient with the progress. Do not expect policies to be adopted in one month, or even one year. Be committed to slow and steady progress. In one international school, gender inclusive practices started with a casual conversation with a principal - one year later, that conversation grew into student-led awareness campaigns, policy development, and other advocacy initiatives for gender inclusion and equality around the school. Research supports the idea that students who feel included and have a sense of belonging to their school community are more likely to be academically motivated, develop social and emotional competencies, and avoid problem behaviors2. These are outcomes that we all strive for as educators. Efforts for achieving gender equality and inclusion creates a more accepting learning environment for all of our students, and is a worthy cause for our action.