A Synthesis Framework Explaining Gendered Outcomes in Caribbean Schooling

• In Event: Marriott Roundtable Session 30
  In Roundtable Session: Interrogating Notions of Identity in African and Caribbean Education

Abstract

Concern over gendered outcomes in schooling has dominated Caribbean academia, media, and policy with an intense gaze upon the perceived underperformance of boys, amounting to a moral panic. Nevertheless, Caribbean theory has failed to keep up to date with emerging explanations and conflicting evidence on gender gaps. In this paper, I construct a synthesis framework to capture a broader evidence-informed understanding of gendered outcome patterns for the Caribbean. This framework uses an explicit ecological perspective and privileges intersectionality. I then explore the evidence and theory from both local and global settings, including data from comparative benchmarking. The evidence suggests that Caribbean patterns are mostly variegated, with males doing poorly in English and Reading but few girls accessing STEM subjects.

Author

• Jerome De Lisle, The University of the West Indies - St. Augustine