Major gender gaps in reading, maths and academic leadership, shows UNESCO report
The UNESCO Global Education Monitoring (GEM) Report 2024-25 has raised serious concerns over gender inequalities in both education outcomes and leadership positions across the world. According to the report, boys are consistently falling behind girls in reading proficiency, especially in middle-income countries.On average, only 87 boys meet the minimum reading level for every 100 girls. This gap widens significantly in middle-income countries, where only 72 boys reach the standard per 100 girls. advertisementDespite these trends, the report notes that gender gaps in mathematics have remained stable for two decades. However, the COVID-19 pandemic appears to have disrupted this balance.
Girls in countries like Brazil, Chile, England, Italy, and New Zealand experienced noticeable drops in their math performance compared to boys.GENDER GAP IN ACADEMIC LEADERSHIPIn terms of leadership, the gender gap remains steep. In India, only 5% of women held top positions such as vice-chancellors or directors in 189 national institutions in 2021. In a broader survey of 1,220 universities, just 9% were women vice-chancellors, and 11% held registrar or top administrative roles.Women are also under-represented as school principals across all school types in India. The report points out that gender bias in promotions and the lack of female representation in top roles continue to be major hurdles.advertisementIn Pakistan and Balochistan, gender segregation in schools further restricts women's leadership opportunities, limiting them to girls-only institutions. In Balochistan, only 29% of schools were girls' schools in 2021, reducing opportunities for female leadership.SOME PROGRESS IN OTHER COUNTRIESBy contrast, Vietnam showed relatively better progress, with 28% of university leadership positions held by women in 2019. However, only 8% served as presidents or rectors, showing that even where women enter leadership, the highest roles remain out of reach.The report concludes that while there has been progress, gender parity is still far from reality in both education quality and leadership across much of the world.
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Indian Express
10 hours ago
- Indian Express
Artist Jayasri Burman on how her love for the the Ganga flows through her canvas
By Jayasri Burman I was still a child when the river Ganga became an indelible part of how I perceived the world. Growing up in Kolkata, visiting the ghats of the river with my family for Mahalaya was an annual ritual. We would offer prayers for our departed ancestors and my father would bathe in the river. Though I participated in the rituals with sincerity, what truly captivated me was the array of activities on the banks. Any ghat we visited across Kolkata — whether Bagbazar, Nimtala or Dakshineswar — it was like a theatre stage, with so many scenes unfolding. If at one end people would be performing aarti, at another they would be mixing black rice and banana to be offered to the river for their ancestors. There would be mourning widows casting their precious shakha-pola bangles into the holy river and another side had people oiling themselves, performing surya pranam exercises. I think it was my admiration for the Ganga that led to the presence of water as an element in my art. Even as a six-seven year old, I would often have a river in my drawings, flowing from the mountains. I still have some of those drawings. Later, of course, the thought-process became more layered, enriched with mythological references merged with my own fantastical imaginations. The river transformed into a mother figure for me. I found it mystical and mysterious how one river could hold such ability to empower and evoke such enduring faith. In many ways, I am still looking for answers. Tracing its course — spanning over 2,500 km from the Himalayas to central India and Bangladesh — you realise how it has been a source of fertility and joy across the region. Even in mythology, she marries King Shantanu and goes on to drown her eight sons for their moksha. This represents the selfless spirit of motherhood, her willingness to suppress her emotional attachment to her children. Over the years, I developed a primordial relationship with the river. I made a conscious effort to pay my obeisance at different ghats, planning trips to places such as Haridwar, Rishikesh, Varanasi and across West Bengal. At every place devotion to her brings people together, yet what we encounter as pilgrims differs. If in Rishikesh the serene waters invite quiet contemplation, in Varanasi the burning ghats flicker with fire at night. There are sadhus with faces smeared with bhasma, vendors selling bead necklaces. Draped in saris with no adornment except the streak of sindoor on their heads, women selling shiv lingams appear to be manifestation of Durga herself. As my admiration for the Ganga deepened, I found myself immersed in the rich mythology, literature and history that detail it. In 2021, when during Covid we saw dead bodies floating in the Ganga, my desire to paint its determination and resilience grew manifold. Though a passage for the dead, the river remained pristine. I began to explore the countless stories that its waters carry, imbibing them into my own imagined landscapes, using creative liberties that I have as an artist. If as Nandini, in my depiction she is seated graciously on a Kamadhenu-like cow in conversation with ducks and hybrid humans, as Adhishree she takes the form of a mermaid in a lotus pond. Kumudini portrays her under a floral umbrella, and as Panchaya Kanya she sits on an elephant, calmly controlling the flow of water with her hands. A series of drawings dedicated to Haridwar have abstract lines come together to create figurative forms and weave narratives of life around it. In the 22-foot bronze sculpture, Jahnavi I — where we see mother Ganga with a lotus headgear, standing on a crocodile and holding a baby girl who morphs into a bird — the river becomes the universe itself, urging people to safeguard the Earth, represented by the child who embodies our shared future. We'll face the consequences of our actions in the years to come. The sculpture's features and form were also inspired by my time learning traditional sculpting techniques from potters at Kumartuli, located near the Hooghly River (a distributary of the Ganga). The lessons I gained there, much like the wisdom imparted by the Ganga, are lifelong. As a river of unwavering faith, the Ganga inspires me with her unbounding resilience. As told to Vandana Kalra
Time of India
2 days ago
- Time of India
Few women leaders in education a serious concern, says global report
Representative AI image New Delhi: 'Most teachers are women, but few lead' is the central message of the 'Leadership in Education: Lead For Learning' section of the Global Education Monitoring (GEM) Report 2024-25, released on Wednesday night by UNESCO . The report highlights what is a problem across countries: the under-representation of women in leadership positions at all levels of the education system — from schools to education ministries. Globally, women make up 57% of secondary school teachers, but in most countries, the proportion of female principals lags the share of female teachers by at least 20 percentage points. This disparity exists despite growing evidence that gender-diverse leadership correlates with better learning outcomes and more enabling school environment. Similar is the story at the higher education level. While women comprise 45% of higher education faculty, they account for only 30% of leadership roles in universities and colleges. India is no exception to this phenomenon. While women dominate the teaching workforce in primary schools, accounting for over 60% of elementary teachers, their number declines sharply in leadership positions, particularly at the secondary and tertiary levels. Factors such as limited access to mentorship, lack of institutional support, safety concerns, and deep-rooted gender norms continue to restrict women's elevation to decision-making roles. The report also examines political leadership in the education sector. Between 2010 and 2023, only 27% of education ministers worldwide were women. This imbalance matters not only for representation purposes but also for policy priorities. Studies cited in the GEM report suggest that female political leaders are more likely to bat for equitable education funding, inclusive curricula, and community engagement. Countries with specific policies to promote gender equity in school leadership are clearly in the minority. Only 11% of countries globally have taken concrete steps to address the gender gap in principal recruitment. Some regions are taking proactive measures — for instance, several francophone African countries are piloting support programmes for female school leaders. The report says that students in such settings, with more schools led by women, were ahead in progress in mathematics and reading by at least six months compared to their peers in male-led schools. It calls for systemic reforms that move beyond token representation. Among the report's recommendations are transparent and gender-sensitive recruitment for leadership roles, targeted training and mentoring programmes for aspiring women leaders, and policies that enable flexible work arrangements and childcare support. As countries work towards Sustainable Development Goal 4 (SDG 4) of inclusive and equitable quality education, educational leadership must reflect the diversity of those it serves. Unless gender barriers in leadership are removed, progress in other aspects of educational equity may remain incomplete, the report has stressed.
India Today
2 days ago
- India Today
Major gender gaps in reading, maths and academic leadership, shows UNESCO report
The UNESCO Global Education Monitoring (GEM) Report 2024-25 has raised serious concerns over gender inequalities in both education outcomes and leadership positions across the world. According to the report, boys are consistently falling behind girls in reading proficiency, especially in middle-income average, only 87 boys meet the minimum reading level for every 100 girls. This gap widens significantly in middle-income countries, where only 72 boys reach the standard per 100 girls. advertisementDespite these trends, the report notes that gender gaps in mathematics have remained stable for two decades. However, the COVID-19 pandemic appears to have disrupted this balance. Girls in countries like Brazil, Chile, England, Italy, and New Zealand experienced noticeable drops in their math performance compared to GAP IN ACADEMIC LEADERSHIPIn terms of leadership, the gender gap remains steep. In India, only 5% of women held top positions such as vice-chancellors or directors in 189 national institutions in 2021. In a broader survey of 1,220 universities, just 9% were women vice-chancellors, and 11% held registrar or top administrative are also under-represented as school principals across all school types in India. The report points out that gender bias in promotions and the lack of female representation in top roles continue to be major Pakistan and Balochistan, gender segregation in schools further restricts women's leadership opportunities, limiting them to girls-only institutions. In Balochistan, only 29% of schools were girls' schools in 2021, reducing opportunities for female PROGRESS IN OTHER COUNTRIESBy contrast, Vietnam showed relatively better progress, with 28% of university leadership positions held by women in 2019. However, only 8% served as presidents or rectors, showing that even where women enter leadership, the highest roles remain out of report concludes that while there has been progress, gender parity is still far from reality in both education quality and leadership across much of the world.
