Students and Teachers Perception About Gender Equality and Human Rights in English Textbook (Pakistan)

Abstract

Although earlier research highlighted the gender representations in ELT textbooks, it did not address how students and teachers view gender equality and the representation of human rights. This study, therefore, is designed to understand English language students' and teachers' perceptions about the inclusion of themes of gender equality and human rights in the English textbook of the 10th grade of the Punjab textbook board. Students' views were probed by means of a survey, and an interview was used to collect data from teachers. The findings revealed that a significant majority of the students believe that topics related to the role of women and the rights and responsibilities of citizens should be included in English textbooks. They also recommended to include topics related to gender equality and human rights in the textbooks. Some of the students agreed that topics related to famous women and male leaders, showing different familial relations of men and women, and both performing outdoor tasks are present in English in the main content, activities, and in the form of images. However, they were either unable to provide any names of the units containing these topics or provided the names of the units from the 9th-grade textbook. Similarly, most of the teachers mentioned that representation of women is limited in the English textbook of 9th grade and the presence of women and their social roles are completely ignored in the 10th-grade textbook. Teachers argued that it is essential to talk about the role of women in the textbook to encourage women's participation, acknowledge their achievements, and promote equality and respect towards women.