EDUCATION FROM A GENDER 
     EQUALITY PERSPECTIVE 
      
      
     MAY 2008 
     This report was developed for USAID’s Office of Women in Development by the EQUATE Project, 
     Management Systems International (Prime Contractor). 
      
      
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                    This report was developed for USAID’s Office of Women in Development by the EQUATE 
                    Project, Management Systems International (Prime Contractor). This report was contracted 
                    under GEW-I-00-02-00021-00, Task Order #1, EQUATE: Achieving Equality in Education. 
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                    Cover photos:  
                    Top left:          Children at a school in Kazakhstan participate in a national reading day. Sapargul  
                                       Mirseitova/ Kazakh Reading Association, Courtesy of USAID  
                    Top right:         Young students in India look on as their teacher uses a chalkboard to explain a lesson. 
                                       © 2007 Rabin Chakrabarti, Courtesy of Photoshare  
                    Bottom right:      A girl in Guatemala waits for her mother after school. © 2003 Antonieta Martin, Courtesy  
                                       of Photoshare  
                    Bottom middle:  Boys in Egypt reading books provided through USAID-funded educational programs. Ben  
                                       Barber, Courtesy of USAID  
                    Bottom left:       A young girl in Eritrea works on her studies. © 2006 Konjit B. Ghebremariam, Courtesy of  
                                       Photoshare  
                     
                     
        EDUCATION FROM A GENDER 
        EQUALITY PERSPECTIVE 
         
         
         
         
         
         
         
         
         
         
         
         
         
         
        DISCLAIMER 
        The author’s views expressed in this report do not necessarily reflect the views of the United States 
        Agency for International Development or the United States Government. 
         
        CONTENTS 
           EXECUTIVE SUMMARY........................................................................................................... 1 
           THE DEVELOPMENT CHALLENGE......................................................................................1 
               Girls’ Education at a Crossroads......................................................................................... 3 
           WHAT ABOUT BOYS?................................................................................................................4 
           GENDER EQUALITY: A CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK FOR REACHING 
           ALL LEARNERS.......................................................................................................................... 5 
           THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN QUALITY AND EQUALITY.........................................6 
           THE MULTIPLE DIMENSIONS OF GENDER EQUALITY IN EDUCATION..................7 
               Equality of Access..............................................................................................................8 
               Equality in the Learning Process ........................................................................................ 8 
               Equality of Educational Outcomes..................................................................................... 9 
               Equality of External Results............................................................................................. 10 
           RECOMMENDATIONS............................................................................................................. 11 
           CONCLUSION............................................................................................................................ 12 
           REFERENCES............................................................................................................................. 13