Educação & Sociedade
On-line version ISSN 1678-4626
STROMQUIST, Nelly P.. A social mapping of gender in education. Educ. Soc. [online]. 2006, vol.27, n.95, pp. 361-383. ISSN 1678-4626. http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/S0101-73302006000200003.
Understanding how the concept of gender is dealt with in educational systems requires a holistic comprehension of its actors and spaces. Social mapping helps visualize the many grounds and points of convergence and divergence. This paper highlights both the independent natures of private and public spaces, and the interaction between them. The private sphere (the home) definitely reduces women's possibilities for full citizenship. Dominated by the state and international agencies, the public space promotes a partial remedy - parity in access to schooling - but ignores curricula that question the status quo, such as sex education and the economic and social rights of women. The non-state public actors support the education of adult women but only deploy weak efforts to modify formal school-age education. This physical context, combined with current times of modernization and globalization that foster competitive practices, forecasts an uncertain future in the redefinition of the social relations of gender.
Keywords : Gender; Education; Social mapping; Public sphere; Private sphere.