1.4 Rationale for promoting gender equity

The role of education in society varies greatly in different research paradigms. Bloch and Vavrus (1998) provide a summary of the major paradigms, the theories derived from them, and their possible implications for women and education in sub-Saharan Africa. Much of the early research on gender and education in developing countries was sponsored by the World Bank, informed by the modernist human capital paradigm, and found that 'both the social and private rates of return to girls' primary education are high' (Swainson et al, 1998:4). Current policies in Malawi are largely informed by this neo-liberal instrumentalist approach, in contrast to which a rights-based approach might be considered an innovation. The presence of more women in the education system might allow space for the creation of educational alternatives that change the system and adapt it to women and their lives, rather than only countering disadvantage by making the existing system more accessible to women. This paper, however, takes a conservative pragmatic standpoint, working from the existing system, analysing the effects of current policy proposals and making recommendations that assume evolution rather than revolution from the status quo.

I will first describe the context in which teacher education operates in Malawi. This will include looking at aspects of the schools and colleges, and comment on the proportion of infant teachers who are female, and the image of an infant teacher. In line with an agenda of mainstreaming gender, I will then consider the implications for women of a number of government policy proposals that aim to improve teacher education. Finally, I will discuss strategies for promoting greater gender equity in primary teacher education, including looking at women teachers' sense of agency over their own lives.