Gender Representation and Sexism in International Language Coursebooks for Tertiary Education

Abstract

Socialization agents, such as family and education, are central to shaping gender norms through social interactions and role modeling. Language teaching coursebooks function as powerful instruments for incorporating gender perspectives into education. To fulfill their purpose effectively, however, these instructional materials must strive to transcend traditional stereotypes, focusing instead on fostering inclusive and authentic learning experiences that reflect unbiased representations of gender. To this end, this research aims to uncover potential gender imbalances and implicit sexism in coursebooks. Using qualitative content analysis, two sets of tertiary-level language education coursebooks from reputable publishers were examined. The analysis, guided by deductive and inductive categories (occupational activities, adjectives, sports, crime, and household activities), revealed a consistent pattern of underrepresentation and stereotypical portrayals of genders across both sets of coursebooks. These findings emphasize the imperative for a thorough review of the content of educational materials to ensure equitable gender representation and to produce educational resources devoid of gender bias.