Gender Consciousness and Privilege

Based on the results of a two year study of three schools undergoing major organizational changes as they prepared for coeducation, it promotes understanding of the role gender plays in education.

Develops a new framework for working in schools that helps educators make informed decisions about change at individual, classroom, curricular and school levels on behalf of gender equity. Addresses the issue of understanding the impact of education on the two sexes, and looks at responsibility for creating gender-fair environments, organising work and creating environments for learning. The book draws on a two-year study into the role that gender played as three Catholic high schools prepared to move from single sex to coeducation. It does not weigh the advantages of single sex against coeducative approaches, but studies gender in a setting where the particpants'' consciousness of gender issues was heightened: faculty and administration were formally and informally discussing gender concepts and students were talking about male and female issues. The book shows that the combination of leadership, staff and curricular awareness, and an understanding of gender fair and gender affirmative practices can serve to improve institutional effectiveness and lead to higher levels of student achievement.