Reframing Gender and Schooling
摘要
We argue that, rather than an atomised and fragmented approach to issues pertaining to gender in schools, system and school-wide attention is needed to establish inclusive school climates where all young people have opportunities and encouragement to flourish. In this chapter, we return to the intricacies and intimacies of policy as it is enacted and constituted within schools as school leaders navigate the volatile policyscape of gender equity and secondary schooling. We draw this together with specific advice that young people provided to the researchers about how schools need to change and what they felt was missing, the various discourses that are mobilised to shut down and silence them, and the processes and structures that facilitate their contributions and their voices. We present recommendations that draw on our findings and link with existing models and policy frameworks, and extend these to respond to the gaps across policy, practices, and relevant aspects of school organisation. We consider the feasibility of change in the face of entrenched in/equitable conditions and contexts for schooling, including a fragmented school sector, the influence of non-state actors and interest groups, timidity and risk aversion, narrow curriculum, and jurisdictional differences. Finally, we note how the divisive recent history of gender equity has impacted to intimidate and delegitimise research, activism, and movements for change, and consider emerging signs of courage and hope.