GENDER ROLES AMONG PUBLIC ELEMENTARY TEACHERS: BASIS FOR GENDER-RESPONSIVE INTERVENTION ACTIVITIES

Abstract

Teachers are usually considered the backbone of schools, and understanding teachers' roles is vital to understanding the educational system. With this as a focus, differences in the perceived gender roles of public male and female elementary teachers were collected from 262 teachers from public central elementary schools in Cavite, Philippines. Results showed that elementary teaching is still a female-dominated profession and students have only limited encounters with male and/or father figures in elementary education. It was also observed that male and female teachers share equal roles in reproductive, community, and leisure activities. However, discrepancies are observed in their productive activities as female teachers spend more time in productive activities than male teachers. Strategies for gender-responsive policies and projects for teachers and other education personnel are recommended.

Keywords: Elementary teachers, gender roles, reproductive roles, productive roles, community roles.

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