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Description
The aim of the project is to advance the knowledge as well as the need to avoid gender stereotypes in educational literature and materials as well as to raise the theoretical awareness and practical knowledge of gender equality among educational staff, teacher educators, curricula creators, publishers and teachers alike.
An analysis of the current situation will be carried out, where a selection of educational materials (both digital and paper versions) will be studied; discussions and training on gender stereotypes will be organized with the project target group and project partners.
The project also foresees training for experts, who will contribute to the topic even after the end of the project timeframe. The main output of the project is a guide created by ENUT experts on gender stereotypes and their prevention for the authors of educational literature and their everyday users. At the end of the project the guidance material is piloting among different target groups and is presented to a wider audience during the final conference of the project.
The partners of this project are NGOs The Estonian Publishers’ Association, Estonian Education Forum, and Tallinn University who will provide their expertise in analyzing the existing materials and putting together the guidance material for the future.
Summary of project results
The expected outcome of this project is to support educational institutions in ensuring equal treatment in education, including monitoring that teaching materials and methods contribute to eliminating gender inequalities and promoting gender equality.
In 2004, the Gender Equality Act was adopted, which obligates educational institutions to ensure that curricula, teaching materials, and research contribute to eliminating inequalities between men and women (boys and girls) and promoting gender equality. Additionally, a regulation from the Ministry of Education and Research mandates that textbooks and teaching materials must be developed based on the core values outlined in the national curricula, one of which is gender equality. The primary goal of gender equality in education is to challenge traditional gender roles and restrictive stereotypes while creating an equitable learning environment that encourages free choices for both girls and boys.
Compared to Scandinavian neighbors, Estonia has conducted very little analysis on the gender aspects of teaching materials. The most significant attention to gender aspects in textbooks was nearly 20 years ago, when studies examined the portrayal of gender roles in history, civic and family education textbooks, and reading materials. Research has shown that both texts and illustrations often reflect traditional gender stereotypes, depicting men and women in different professional fields and roles in the labor market. Such portrayals can limit students'' freedom of choice and opportunities in their educational paths. A more recent study from 2017 highlighted that gender equality receives relatively little attention in both curricular and extracurricular activities in schools.
As a result, there is a need to analyze the teaching materials currently in use, both in terms of shaping gender roles and promoting gender equality more broadly. Furthermore, there is a lack of understanding regarding the awareness of teachers and other education professionals about gender equality and its promotion, particularly concerning the selection and use of available teaching materials.
To implement the project’s objectives, learning materials across various subjects and educational levels were analyzed.
The analysis was presented to key stakeholders to understand how different groups interpret the findings and to gather feedback on aspects that should be emphasized in the guidelines. Based on this analysis and roundtable discussions, experts developed a guide to help identify and avoid gender stereotypes in educational materials.
The guide is intended for three main target groups: publishers of learning materials, teacher educators, and teachers—each of whom approaches the issue of gender stereotypes from a slightly different perspective.
As part of the project, training sessions were conducted for education professionals. These sessions covered gender equality, the presence of gender stereotypes in learning materials, and the importance of avoiding them. Alongside theoretical insights, real-life examples from existing textbooks—both positive and problematic—were reviewed. The goal was to raise awareness of how to recognize stereotypes, understand their impact on students, and provide guidance on how to address them in the classroom. Additionally, the methodological guide for developing and using educational materials was introduced.
Finally, the guide was piloted among educational publishers to gather feedback for further refinement.
The project resulted in the development of a methodological guide, "Creating and Using Gender-Stereotype-Free Textbooks and Learning Materials." The guide aims to support the creation, editing, reviewing, publishing, and evaluation of learning materials to ensure compliance with legal and curriculum-based requirements for reducing gender inequality and promoting gender equality in education. It raises awareness of unconscious biases and helps identify and eliminate gender stereotypes in both newly developed and existing materials.
The guide aligns with current Estonian education policies and incorporates international best practices. It is freely accessible on the ENUT website: Guide.
Additionally, a background document to the guide was compiled (Background Material), providing insights into education policy goals, gender representation in primary school textbooks, gender equality in civic and social studies materials, and international guidelines for avoiding gender stereotypes.
Both the guide and background material are publicly available on the ENUT website. The methodological guide will be integrated into teacher education programs at Tallinn University, particularly in early childhood education courses focusing on stereotypes.
The project also contributed to strengthening collaboration among experts working on gender equality in education, as they were previously dispersed across different institutions without a unified network. Through joint activities and training sessions, the project facilitated connections and networking among these professionals.
Overall, the project laid the groundwork for achieving its goals by providing essential tools: a methodological guide for identifying and avoiding gender stereotypes, training sessions for different target groups, awareness-raising initiatives, and supporting background materials.