GENDER INEQUITY IN SCIENCE AND MATHEMATICS

EDUCATION IN AFRICA: THE CAUSES,

CONSEQUENCES, AND SOLUTIONS
LEWIS ASIMENG-BOAHENE, P H . D

Penn State University-Harrisburg

Over the past years, a large body of scholarly literature has
developed to address gender inequity in the developed world,
and suggestions for reducing the gender gap are well documented in the literature. However, still lacking in research is why
there is gender inequity in mathematics and science education in
African schools. Girls are not receiving the same quality, or even
quantity, of education as their male classmates in both subjects.
This article discusses this gender bias, the discriminatory policies, and the consequences. It also suggests several promising
strategies for discovering long-term solutions to this problem.

Introduction

Science and technology have long been

recognized as the cornerstone of development and prosperity of Africa. Economic
prosperity of African countries is interlinked with its skillful utilization and
management of science and technology.
This underscores the importance of skilled
human resources in the science, mathematics and technology fields in Africa.
However, while the benefits of science and
mathematics education for women in sustainable social and economic development
are numerous in some major parts of the
world, Africa still lags behind other continents in terms of provision of science and
mathematics education for girls. Female
education and training in Africa is generally characterized by lower performance
and achievement levels than those of boys,
especially in mathematics, science and
other technical subjects (Gachukia & Kabira, 1991).

occupied a prominent place in Africa's educational circles. Several contributing

factors are addressed in this paper and they
include the early childhood environment,
family expectations, societal image, gender stereotypes, and the school
environment and gender issues in Africa.
The paper further addresses the consequences of this disparity for Africa and
finally offers some recommended solutions including accommodating various
leaming styles and perspectives, connecting science concepts to life experiences,
promoting an environment of self-confidence and success, providing students with
female role models, effective networking,
advocating gender-fair materials, genderbased affirmative action, conducting
workshops and in-service training for science teachers and finally advocating for
effective official government polices and
involvement.

A closer look at the factors reveals that

the problem continues as it has not yet

711

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THEORETICAL PERSPECTIVES ON
GENDER ISSUES

Of late one of the most active debates

in academia has been on nature versus nurture controversy and this dispute is so
controversial the opposing sides almost
never discuss them. It is in view of these
different schools of thought that one finds
Harvard's President Lawrence Summers'
recent statement that women might be
intrinsically disadvantaged in studying science and mathematics (Reid, 2003; Fogg,
2005a; Fogg, 2005b), which has generated strong public debate very fascinating.
One school of thought about the differences between men's and women's brains
believes Summers' remarks have merit
because due to physical development of
their brains, males have better developed
visual spatial ability than girls (see Child
& Smithers, 1971); thus, women suffer
from a genetic deficit, and that biological
differences between men and women really can account for some of the
under-representation of women in some
fields of science (See Gray, 1981). According to this philosophical framework,
'women lack the basic intellectual equipment' to profit from science education.
Thus, they attribute gender inequity in academic performance in science and
mathematics to genetics (Benbow & Stanley, 1980; Gray, 1981), and not
surprisingly, individuals who subscribe to
this position are reluctant to commit
resources to serve the needs of women.
However, another school of thought
advocates that there is substantial research
that provides clear and compelling evidence that women, like men, flourish in
science when they are given the opportu-

nity and a supportive environment. This

scholarship had polished off the genetic
deficit predisposition with a view that the
sexes are equal enough in their intellectual abilities that any biological differences
between them is vastly outweighed by
social pressures and discrimination that
discourage girls and women from pursuing science and mathematics (see Jahoda,
1979). Thus, to this paradigm, scientists
are made not born as scientific knowledge
requires years of education and training
and that women lack behind because they
do not have 'cognitively stimulating environment' for science education (; Linn &
Hyde, 1989; Hyde, Fennema, & Lamon,
1990; Kahle & Meece, 1994; Solomon,
1997; Xie et al.,2003). It is in the context
of these different paradigms or theoretical
frameworks that this paper addresses gender inequity in science and mathematics
in Africa where women have difficulty in
accessing education and rarely found in
hierarchical posts or at decision making
level.

THE AFRICAN SCENE

The blessings of securing equal access

for females in science/mathematics education are now recognized among
non-governmental organizations, lending
institutions and govemments in Africa. The
Millennium Declaration which was signed
in September 2000 (UN, 2000a) has as
some of its goals, the promotion of gender
equity and the empowerment of women,
and also the elimination of gender inequity
in primary and secondary education by
2005 and in all levels of education no later
than 2015 (UN, 2000b).

Gender Inequity .../713

Gender disparities in science/mathematics education is the sector of the African

education system which has received little attention when it comes to tackling
many of the problems facing this continent (Naidoo & Savage, 1998).
Traditionally, the educational systems of
the former colonizers has influenced the
science/mathematics education in African
countries, which involves a direct transfer
of science curricula, examinations and
teaching methods from westem countries
that have failed to address the current challenges in the continent. This has resulted
in a science/mathematics education that in
most African countries is exemplified by
de-contextualized knowledge being transmitted by poorly trained teachers in under
resourced and sometimes over crowded
classrooms (RoUnick, 1998;Yoloye, 1998).

(FEMSA, 1997). Low participation in

math/science education at this level is thus
only a problem in countries where children are not in school. However, most
countries in this region have a gender gap
that disadvantages girls (UNESCO, 2001).
The Education For All assessment (EFA
200 Assessment) undertaken in year 2000,
by the UNESCO, the National Education
Statistical Information Systems (NESIS)
and the Association for the Development
of Education in Africa (ADEA) noted that
42 million children were out of school in
sub-Saharan Africa. Approximately 60% of
these were also girls (UNESCO, NESIS
& ADEA, 2000).
In developing countries the tendency is
for the participation rates to drop significantly from primary to secondary school.
In sub-Saharan Africa the gross enrolment
rate in secondary education is 29.1% from
males and 23.3% from females (UNESCO,
1999a).
The following table shows the percentage of girls enrolled in secondary
education who participated in leaving
examination in science. The percentage of

Gender Patterns in Science/math education

in sub-Saharan Africa:

Participation in science and mathematics education at Primary level is in general

compulsory in all sub-Saharan countries

Physics

Chemistry

Biology

Ghana

35 (65)

35.8 (64.2)

44.2 (55.8)

Tanzania

25

25

compulsory

Uganda

29.5 (70.5)

36.8 (63.2)

40.3 (59.7)

Cameroon

2-24% of girls choose science (district variations)

Tabte 1.1 Percentage enrotment oftotat number of girts and boys (in brackets) enrotted in
secondary education who participated at teaving examinations in science. Source: FEMSA
(1997-19, pp. 9-10).

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boys' participation is shown in brackets.

In terms of performance, the FEMSA
study showed that girls scored significantly
lower than boys in all science/math subjects
in the secondary schools that participated
in the first phase of FEMSA (FEMSA,
1997-10, pp. 11-13).
Studies in participation at tertiary education reveal that in the sub-Saharan
average for science education in tertiary
education was 5.1 % for male and 2.8% for
females (UNESCO, 1999a). In 2001
FAWE noted that data from ten selected
universities in Africa showed that women's
enrolment in most universities is below
half that of men (FAWE, 2001).

EXPLAINING CAUSES OF GENDER

INEQUITY
Trying to find out what causes gender
inequity in mathematics and science education has been the center of attention of
much gender research and studies in science education (see Kenway & Gough,
1998; Mulemwa, 1999; UNESCO, 1999b,
Bordo, 2001; UNESCO, 2003a; Reid,
2003). These studies have resulted in an
extensive but incoherent body of information suggesting why females in developing
world are underrepresented and underperforming in some areas of math and science
education especially in sub-Saharan Africa.
At the beginning of twenty-first century, women remain a minority in the
mathematics and science disciplines in
Africa. Despite considerable progress
toward gender equity in other areas, a lingering mind-set perseveres. Such beliefs
as "Females are not good in mathematics
and science" still have their advocates

because of long-held assumptions and

beliefs. However, there is consistent documentation that the major contributors to
the gender gap in science and mathematics are environmental in nature influenced
by society (Guzzeti & Williams, 1996;
Jones et al., 2000; Adams, 1996; Sadker &
Sadker, 1994; Mewborn, 1999; Pollina,
1995); as it is endemic to the socio-cultural, political and economic history of the
African continent. Society, by this paper,
is considered as an organized group of people associated together for cultural, social,
political, economic and geographical purposes that influence all aspects of an
individual's life. Thus, the differential treatment of females in Africa is grounded in
beliefs that society has about gender differences. Sexism is woven into African
societal tapestry and pervades the various
cultures. Societies in most African countries undervalue the role of women, placing
higher value on the traditional male role.
Girls and women receive conflicting messages about their worth and place in African
cultures from schools, home, and the community. Science as a subject itself has
traditionally discouraged participation of
women. Adding to the problem is that science classes are traditionally competitive
and do not make room for a variety of
leaming styles (Mulemwa, 1999; Graham,
2001). The proceeding themes on sociocultural values, beliefs and practices of
African societies coupled with the existing
educational eco-system provide a forum
for the discussion of the causes of gender
inequity in science and mathematics education in African schools.

Gender Inequity ... / 715

The Early Childhood Environment

One major obstacle to gender disequilibrium in mathematics and science

education is attributable to early childhood
environment. Boys and girls in Africa are
from beginning, brought up under different environmental setting. Parents are more
likely to react absolutely to self-confident
acts of their sons and to emotional
demeanor in their daughters (Woolfolk,
1998). Boys are encouraged to be more
physically active and to learn how to
address their own problems while girls are
convinced to be obedient, tender and conscientious. Boys, therefore, tend to be
brought up to be independent, while there
is propensity to call on girls to be subservient and affectionate (Woolfolk, 1998;
Mulemwa, 1999). Thus, the important
learning tools in science classrooms which
include discussion, problem solving, and
laboratory exercises, tend to be more in
sync with environment which boys are used
to. There is the tendency to have an environmentally- induced head start for boys
in science even before they are introduced
to the subject in school (Guzzetti &
Wilhams, 1996; Woolfolk, 1998,Aldridge
& Goldman, 2002).

Family Expectations

Generally, family expectations have also

been a disincentive for mathematics and
science education for girls in Africa. Girls
tend to be given time consuming domestic responsibilities, which leave them with
not much time for private study. Girls contemplating a career in science in some
cultures may find the issue of family versus career a major dilemma, and family

usually takes precedence. There is the tendency for females tofindit difficult to look
to the future to make career plans based
on their interests, rather than the mandates
of influential persons, especially their parents, as parents tend to encourage males
more than females to pursue advanced
coursework in science and mathematics
(Adams, 1996; Mewborn, 1999;
Mulemwa, 1999).

Societal Images of Women

Another phenomena explaining gender

inequity is low societal images of women
in some cultures of Africa. The values of
most African cultures assume and reflect
the somehow generally accepted less significant status of women some of which
are embedded in mythologies, riddles and
proverbs. However, these images on which
African socialization systems thrive have
not yet received any thought-provoking
inquiry (Gachukia & Kabira, 1991;Bunyi,
2004). For instance, gender-differentiated
prospect for future income; women's labor
and household chores; open and hidden
dissuasion from pursuing particular track
of study, educational attainment of parents, religious and ethical guideline of
family, are some of the major problems
stemming from these socio-cultural images
(Mulemwa, 1999; Samoff, 2003).

Gender Stereotypes

Gender stereotype is another glaring

problem. Widespread acceptance of stereotyping of scientists and engineers as
predominantly male domain from elementary to university level is still the norm.

716 / Education Vol. 126 No. 4

This refers to the practices of attributing

roles, behaviors, and aspirations to individuals or groups solely on the basis of
gender. Discriminations based on gender
stereotype surface in many ways in the
school context. It may occur, for example,
through teachers' samples of group placements and activity assignments, the content
of compliments and criticism.. Examples
range from the treatment of females in textbooks and curriculum materials to
differential treatment of males and females
in the classroom, to mistaken beliefs about
attitudes and cognitive abilities (Woolfolk,
1998; Mulemwa, 1999; Mewborn, 1999;
Wood, 2000; Martorella et al. 2005; Saitoti,
2005).
The traditional female stereotypes
emphasize dependence, personal relationships, and feelings (Smith, 1992). These
stereotypes promote female achievement
through conformity, by accepting the
notions that success is achieved through
being well-behaved, and obedient (Adams,
1996). These stereotypes encourage girls
to adopt self-conceptions and values that
reduce the importance of interest and
achievement in science and mathematics.
Unlike boys, these self-conceptions among
females lead to a pattern of internalized
helplessness with respect of science and
mathematics, with failure credited to lack
of ability and success to luck (Smith, 1992;
Adams, 1996). In Botswana, for instance,
boys are still channeled into the so-called
masculine areas such as mathematics, science and technology, while girls are
concentrated in the so-called feminine disciplines like home economics, language
and teaching (Duncan, 1989). Furthermore,

boys are treated more tolerably than girls

for outbursts of temper in the classrooms
(Graham, 2001).

THE SCHOOL ENVIRONMENT AND

GENDER-ISSUES IN AERICA

The African educational systems'

inability to address the gender issues in
terms of power relations in the private and
public area cuts across all levels of education, from primary to tertiary education.
It should come as no surprise then that the
schools have contributed in no small measure in bringing about gender inequity in
mathematics and science education in
Africa and the issues involved are captured
in the proceeding discussions.

Attitudes and Instructional Methods of

Teachers

There is a strong belief among some

teachers that mathematics and science subjects are a male preserve. Many teachers,
including women teachers, despite much
Up service to the equality of girls and boys,
just do not believe that girls have the ability to study mathematics and science. The
result is that teachers have low expectations of girls' ability to perform well in
science and mathematics (O'Connor,
2000). Female Education in Mathematics
and Science in Africa (FEMSA) studies in
eight African countries namely, Burkina
Faso, Kenya, Mali, Malawi, Mozambique,
Senegal, Swaziland, and Zambia (cited in
O'Connor, 2000) found teachers' attitudes
and approaches to factor greatly in this

Gender Inequity .../717

state of affairs across all the countries.

Again, teachers generally tended to accept
the situation as heing out of their control
and inevitable and therefore, saw nothing
wrong in terms of their attitudes and
instructional styles (O'Connor, 2000).
Therefore, poor expectation of girls'
performance in the mathematics and science subjects is a common spectacle. The
following set of statements has been a common feature in science and mathematics
classes:
Comfort Owusu, 38%. Connie! You
have really made an effort during
this test!
Kwadwo Mensah, 74%. Hey, my
brother! You did not try enough! You
must really work harder next term!
Statements like these send mixed signals that, it is not unheard of, if females
under-perform in mathematics and science
examinations but very much unacceptable
if a male student's performance is above
average. After over a decade of enhanced
awareness of the need for more genderequitable treatments, the messages that
such comments can convey to students cannot be overlooked.
Furthermore, Female Education in
Mathematics and Science in Africa
(FEMSA)'s eight countries research project ( cited in O'Connor, 2000) further
revealed that poor expectations of girls'
performance on the part of teachers leads
to the kind of science and mathematics
classroom dynamics, where girls are treated very differently from boys. Their studies
revealed that teachers do not encourage
girls during mathematics and science

lessons, and in fact, at times, actively discourage them. One way they do this is by
directing more challenging, high order
thinking questions to males, while only
simple recall type of questions to females
(Rosser, 1990; Kenway & Gough, 1998;
Mulemwa, 1999). This kind of treatment
can only reinforce and confirm in the minds
of both boys and girls what society and literature peddles around 'that science is for
boys only.' Boys therefore, over time,
develop at these subjects which they consider a male domain. Therefore, girls shy
away from any active participation during
science and mathematics for fear of being
taunted by their male classmates. The study
further showed that girls complain that
boys call them names when they attempt
to ask teachers questions. Boys on the other
hand, fault girls for being unable to take
jokes and name calling sometimes coined
out of concepts leamed in science classes.
This situation is tolerated by many teachers and school administrations (O'Connor,
2000). Thus teachers' classroom instructional and management practices are not
always conducive to learning especially
for girls in science and mathematics courses (FAWE, 2001).
Furthermore, one of the best documented findings of the past years is that
teachers interact more often and in more
detail with boys than with girls. This has
been observed in students from preschool
to college. Teachers ask males more questions and give them more feedback (e.g.
praise, criticism, correction), and give them
more valuable and specific comments
(Adams, 1996; Graham, 2001, Guzzetti &
Williams, 1996). Small group activities
unless assembled by gender, also con-

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tribute to gender inequity. Girls often

engage in passive activities such as recording data, while boys get the opportunity to
handle equipment, dissect, and engage in
hands-on problem-solving (Guzzetti &
Williams, 1996; Mewborn, 1999). The
above discussed problems are aptly summarized by Mulemwa (1999) in the
UNESCO Special project on "Scientific,
Technical and Vocational Education
(STVE) of Girls in Africa" in the following fashion:
Many ofthe factors that inhibit girls'
participation and good performance
in the STVE field have been found
to be similar across countries and
regions. Those that are common
include gender biased curriculum
and other education materials; poor
teaching methods and classroom
practices and hence pointing to
teacher training; lack of appropriate
guidance and counseling of students,
particularly girls; and the lack of
encouragement and motivation of
the girls to pursue studies in these
fields (p. 3)

applies to the boys.

Some researchers (Rop, 1998, Martin
& Newcomer, 1999) have attributed one
ofthe causes of gender inequity in science
and mathematics to the disciplines themselves. Science discipline, especially
physical sciences, has usually discouraged
women into the field, causing attrition of
more female than male students leaving
thefield.Traditional physical science classes are extremely competitive, and do not
make room for diversity of learning styles
(Graham, 2001).
Furthermore, the absence of senior
women scientists and mathematicians in
most public arena in Africa translate that
girls have few role models with whom to
identify, and few female mentors to encourage them (Nancy, 1999). Again career
advisors in the schools are themselves illprepared to extol the virtues of a career in
science and technology for girls; and primary school teachers teaching the science
subjects are themselves, more often than
not, unfamiliar with science lessons and
are therefore not equipped enough to make
the subject exciting (Nancy, 1999).

Gender-Biased Materials in Schools

Lack of confidence in Science as a Discipline

One difference among girls and boys

in math and science education that is suggested by gender researchers in many
countries is the difference in self-confidence (Kenway & Gough, 1998; Andre et
al., 1999). Studies have shown that even
when girls tend to perform just as well as
boys, their confidence relating to their abilities of learning science is lower than what

Another well-established form of

stereotyping and gender-bias comes from
textbooks and other learning materials
(Woolfolk, 1998; Mewborn, 1999; Wood,
2000). Many have documented through
content analysis that most ofthe textbooks
published tend to depict both males and
females in sexually stereotyped posifions.
There is the tendency to present women in
biased ways, primarily as mothers, home-

Gender Inequity .../719

makers, and care givers, with limited role

as professionals (Stromquist, 2005). A
study conducted in 1975 on Women on
Words and Images established that the
entire number of stories dealing with males
were four times as great as those dealing
with females. In addition, this study found
that while men were usually more vibrant
and daring, females tended to be shown in
the home, behaving submissively and conveying incompetence (Woolfolk, 1998).
According to Duncan (1989), schools in
Botswana continue to use gender-biased
instructional materials and other forms of
sexism in the school environment.

CONSEQUENCES
The consequences of gender bias in science education create problems both for
individuals and for society. It is well documented that girls, early on, suffer from
lack of self-esteem and self-confidence
(Graham, 2001, Jones, Howe, & Rua,
2000; Pollina, 1995). In addition, they have
low perceived ability in science, negative
attitudes toward science classes, and lack
of motivation to pursue advanced studies
in science and mathematics (DeBacker &
Nelson, 2000). The costs of low performance in mathematics and science subjects
are that women and girls are unable to enter
science-related careers. A study carried out
in Ghana on post-secondary school subject choices indicates the following:
Only 12% of girls elect to study science (physics, chemistry, and
biology).
Only 5% of girls enroll for mathematics

Less than 1% of girls enter middlelevel technical training institutions

(Andam, 1990).
The above studies show that generally
women are invisible when one talks about
science and technology education which
have long been recognized as the comerstone of development in Ghana in particular
and Africa in general.

SOLUTIONS: What Should Be Done?

If the above discussed problems are

some of the reasons why women are not
to be found in greater numbers in science
and technology, what further can be done
to address the under-representativeness?
In spite of the mounting problems militating against women in mathematics and
science education in Africa, I am of the
opinion that something positive could be
done about these problems to make mathematics and science subjects more
appealing to women. The following are
some of the solutions recommended by the
paper.

GENDER RESPONSIVE POLICIES IN

THE SCHOOL ENVIRONMENT

The schools' endeavor to address the

gender problems can take many forms. A
pohcy is a statement of guiding principle,
which defines main beliefs that guide plans,
actions and practices. Gender responsive
policy is a set of guidelines, which characterize principles on how to address
imbalances and inequalities that have
resulted from socially and culturally con-

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structed differences between men and

women in a given society. A gender responsive policy, therefore, seeks to redress the
historical and socio-cultural imbalances
that have created gender hierarchies and
limited the extent to which women realize
their basic human needs as in the case of
Africa.

Accommodating Various Learning Styles and

Viewpoints

Numerous scholars have explored the

implications of attending to various learning styles in the teaching-learning process
(Anderson & Adams, 1992; Guild, 1997;
Johnson, 1998). There is consensus among
scholars that attending to the unique ways
in which students leam should be part of
the teaching and learning process. Silver
et al. (1997) indicate that "learning styles
emphasize the different ways people think
and feel as they solve problems, create
products, and interact...Learning styles
are concerned with differences in the
process of learning" (P. 22).
Many teachers have choreographed the
curriculum to cater to male student population and expect females to conform.
Science teachers, however, must include
pedagogical practices that have relevance
and meaning to gender issues for as Dewey
(1933) reminds us that "Everything the
teacher does, as well as the manner in
which he does it, incites the child to
respond in some way or another, and each
response tends to get the child's attitude in
some way or the other" (p. 59).
Therefore, the above recommendation
calls for making the teaching-learning

process gender responsive in all learning

environments including the family by
restructuring the curriculum and training
teachers on different teaching methodologies in all contexts including how to deal
with students with special needs. It also
involves providing friendly learning environments that are inclusive, affordable and
accessible to all students.
We have seen how all factors both in
and out of school contribute to gender
inequity in science and mathematics. However, teachers are somehow limited in their
ability to control the influences that society has outside of the school environment.
However, even with these restrictions,
teachers can still contribute tremendously
to the minimization of gender bias within
the classroom.
Educational policies that govern education do not always favor girls and
women. In the provision of school places,
equipment, teachers' distribution and
deployment, the gender approach needs to
be addressed to ensure non discriminatory practices. An increasing body of research
suggests that equating learning styles with
teaching and learning activities contributes
to meeting each individual's unique needs
(Stewart, 1990).

Linking Science and Mathematics Concepts

to life Experiences

The curriculum in many African countries needs to be revisited for relevance and
appropriateness as some countries continue to use curricula inherited from the
colonial times (Asimeng-Boahene, 1999).
There is a need to review the curriculum

Gender Inequity .../721

so that science and mathematics leamed

in school be meaningful and practical for
female students. As demonstrate by Paulus
Gerdes in his book, Geometry of Africa;
the business acumen of market women,
street vendors quick-thinking mathematical computation, on the spot determination
of what is a good buy or a good sale; the
kind of geometry involved in hair styles,
basket weaving, pot making, bead work,
cloth weaving can be used in mathematics
and science classes for illustrations (Cited
in O'Connor, 2000). Thus interests of the
students, and also the applications of science concepts, particularly physical
science, to life learning and life skills
should feature prominently in the science
classrooms (Brown University, 1996, cited
in Tindall and Hamil, 2004).
Environment of Self-Conftdence and
Success
Communicating loudly and clearly that
both boys and girls would be equally
expected to do well in mathematics and
science courses by teachers can go a long
way in motivating science and mathematics students (Wood, 2000, cited in Tindall
& Hamil, 2004). However, teachers need
to pay more attention to girls as they may
not be able, due to environmental circumstances, to do as well in science and
mathematics as boys. Thus, the role of the
teacher in praising students and verbalizing expectations is critical in fostering
self-confidence in girls. For instance, it is
very important to give regular feedbacks
in the form of un-stereotyped comments
thereby highlighting female students' confidence in terms of the content of course
(Pollina, 1995). Teachers can also encour-

age participation and foster self-confidence

by giving consistent positive reinforcement
for their comments and questions (Guzzetti
& Williams, 1996, Mewbom, 1999).
Female Role Models as Guest Speakers

Increasing representation of female role

models is a potential force to promote girls
education in mathematics and science.
Schools could invite women who have
excelled in the field of science and technology to their schools or classroom to talk
about their experiences. For example, in
Kenya, schools could invite Dr. Wangari
Maathai, the Kenyan first African woman
to win a Nobel Peace Prize for her work
on environmental issues and human rights
to the schools to talk about environment.
Her award could be a perfect and rewarding exercise for women studying science
and mathematics in Kenya. Ardent advocates for using women as effective teaching
tools in science classrooms justify it by the
positive effects that woman resource person may have on students in general and
women in particular. The use of women as
resource persons cannot only serve as role
models for science girls, but their presence
in the science classrooms is important to
male students and teachers too. Furthermore, the presence of female guest
speakers in the schools can serve as psycho social therapy boosting female
students' self-esteem, helping to raise the
aspiration, motivation, and academic levels of female science students in Africa.
The importance of this concept is further
reiterated by Braithwaithe (1995), when
he sums up that, "process of dialogue with
those who suffer from acts of irresponsibility [on the part of society] are among the

722 / Education Vol. 126 No. 4

most effective ways of bringing home to

us as human beings ones obligations to
take responsibility for our deeds" (P. 21).

Networking among Female Scientists

Networking among female scientists in

Africa should be promoted through publications, meetings, and virtual discussion
groups. Marriner-Tomey (1993) describes
networking as a means in which people
communicate, share ideas and information, and give support and direction to each
other. The inclusion of women in the mathematics and science education networking
circles of the men at the center of power
would be of further great benefit (Nancy,
1999). Thus, the science/mathematics
women teachers need a network with other
professionals to help them function effectively. Networking promotes bonds with
people throughout the profession, both
within and outside the work environment.
Also, it creates new opportunities and
makes it easier for the exchange of ideas,
knowledge, and information. Science
teachers can develop a network by a)
attending local, regional and national conferences, b) joining the alumni association
and attending alumni meetings, c) joining
and participating in professional organizations, and d) socializing with
professional colleagues (O'Leary et al.,
1986, cited in Asimeng-Boahene, 1999).
Thus, women in science and mathematics
must maintain outside contacts if they are
to manage a fulfilling and effective professional career as this can help them find
new opportunities and also attract mentors.

Gender-based Affirmative Action

Since the existing policies and practices

have failed to address the unjust realities
in terms of gender inequity in science and
mathematics, it is not too late for the institutions to go out of their way to assure
justice through gender-based affirmative
action. Affirmative action, in general, is a
policy whereby preference is given to
underrepresented minority applicants. It is
one of the most talked about and most controversial issues in the field of academia
(Grofman & Merrill, 2004). This suggestion may be controversial as critics argue
that admissions to institutions of higher
leaming are based on merits and therefore,
allowing women to enter at lower cut off
points than their male counterparts 'waters
down' standards. This approach further
endorses the notion of women as intellectually weaker gender and thus denies them
the prestige they would achieve by making it on their own (Sowell, 2004). Sowell
(2004) further concludes from his analysis of affirmative action that "despite
sweeping claims made for affirmative
action programs, an examination of their
actual consequences makes it hard to support those claims or even to say that these
programs have been beneficial on the net
balance..." (P. 120). However, advocates
who believe in this adjusted admission
advantage for women talk about the opportunity cost of admission preferences by
viewing the policy to be, if at all, positive
discrimination and a necessary evil. As
such, stake holders must be prepared to
subscribe to the view that any amount of
social redress, however, small, is worth
any amount of costs of inaction, for accord-

Gender Inequity ...1122

ing to Szockyj and Frank (Cited in Szockyj and Fox, 1995), "preserving the gender
queue bestows advantages on all men by
reinforcing their dominant position in
employment, and by extension, in society"
(p. 16).
This paper is of the opinion that 'softening' the admission criteria by modest
degree for females seems to be an appropriate measure to help reduce the gender
gap. The policy addresses the demographics of sex inequities and
discrimination in school admissions as
emphasis is on achieving equality of opportunity in the education and work
environment.
During my eight years teaching experience in Nigeria, for instance, places in
university are required to "reflect the federal character" of Nigeria. This means that
there are quotas for all the large ethnic
groups in the country. I am ofthe view that
the same can be done to reflect the gender
character ofthe Federal Republic of Nigeria. Thus given the current dismal picture
of females in science and mathematics education in Africa, introducing preferential
policies in the form of gender-based affirmative action seems to be an immediate
option if not an all time remedy towards
maintaining a gender equity community
in academia.

Workshops and In-Service Training for

Teachers

Gender awareness training in the form

of workshops and in-service training for
mathematics and science educators should
become an integral part of the school curriculum in African countries as they are

necessary to help produce current and competent teachers. This will require the
development of a focused institutionalized
and regular in-servicing of mathematics
and science teachers. Basically, gender
awareness training allows teachers to incorporate gender parameters in their
instruction. The training should focus on,
among others, the concepts, scope and content, the methods of teaching and assessing
the end product of the subject, and textbook development and production, etc.
Such schools-based workshops to improve
science and mathematics teachers' methodologies and skills and update on new
techniques is vital force to help reduce the
stigma that has been attached to females
subordinate position in mathematics and
science education in Africa. Also, as stated by George Saitoti, Kenya's Educafion
Minister when launching the Association
for the Development of Education in Africa
Working Group on Mathematics and Science Education in Nairobi "This approach
will help to demystify the learning of mathematics and science
subjects"
www.allafrica.com/stories.html (Accessed
3 March 2005).
This can also be done through outreach
activities in conjunction with other stake
holders like Non-governmental Organizations focusing on gender issues. This could
take the form of a production of documentary videos or films about women and
science and mathematics education to be
distributed within the country involved to
schools and communities. Also career guidance counselors have to visit various parts
ofthe country to organize sessions for students, parents, community leaders
promoting careers in science and mathe-

724 / Education Vol. 126 No. 4

matics. /

Official Government Policy and Involvement

This paper is calling on various African

governments to be guided by the wise saying of 'Aggrey of Africa' that we develop
a nafion by educating women. Thus, there
should be a deliberate effort at advocacy
for policies at the national level that promote science and mathematics education
for women. Governments should make
conscious efforts to improve the participation and performance of girls in science,
mathematics and technology subjects from
primary through secondary to terdary levels. Ministries of Education and policy
makers should be invigorated to make the
necessary adjustment in curriculum,
teacher training and examinations to ensure
fuller participation and better achievement
in science and mathematics subjects by
girls (O'Connor, 2000)
Another suggestion is for the governments of Africa and other interested stake
holders to allocate sufficient resources for
quality girls' education and enactment of
legislation to ensure education for all. This
approach might help in eradicating feminization of poverty and gender bias in
science education as this approach can go
a long way reducing the pressure on family and household incomes and thereby
freeing girls from exploitative labor and
allow them to be educated.

The Future of Gender and Science/

Mathematics Education in Africa

Given the pace of change about gender

and schooling and the work being done by
Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs),
UNESCO, Governmental institutions and
agencies towards gender and education in
Africa, an appreciable prediction to make
is that these organizations will continue to
push for cultural and political changes that
address gender inequity in science and
mathematics education in Africa. As
schooling nurtures and develops cognitive
behavior; its all-embracing nature works
against traditional status categories of people, so it is not hard to imagine in a
foreseeable future, Africa with very low
gender differences in mathematics/science
educafion, related topics and other technical subjects.
The rate of change, however, is likely
to be affected both by national cultural values and by opportunity structures that
might vary within countries. Nevertheless,
any gender difference in mathematics/science education should be redefined as a
problem of social injustice and inefficiency that needs to be done away with. Thus,
until issues of gender and education are
considered seriously through innovative
educational programs by stake holders and
progressive policies by the various governments, neither girls nor boys will receive
an education that is both excellent and equitable in the continent of Africa.

Gender Inequity ...1125

CONCLUSION
I have addressed in the paper why gender inequity in mathematics and science
still exists in African schools, and also
offered several strategies for the purpose
of discovering long-term solutions to this
problem. I strongly believe that investment
in science and mathematics education for
women would yield broad economic benefits in Africa, if we are to take cognizance
of the saying that 'If you educate a man,
you educate an individual; but if you educate a woman, you educate a nation.'
African women are absolutely central to
sustainable development and socio-economic advancement on the African
continent. With the new flying phrases
being scientific and technological advancements, let all stake holders in Africa, be
they families, schools, communities, governments etc, through their skills,
innovations and intellect, chart a new era
of development for African women by
being gender-sensitive in all their endeavors and thereby helping in uplifting women
in mathematics and science subjects on the
continent of Africa.

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