The need to use technology in equalizing opportunities is particularly crucial in Pakistan which has one the world’s largest gender enrollment gap. Compared to the rest of South Asia including India, Sri Lanka, and Bangladesh, Pakistan lags where only 65% of primary-aged girls are enrolled, compared to 77% of boys.
Apart from helping teachers to focus on marginalized students which are predominantly girls, the intervention by CERP also allows the research team to examine the impact of education technology (edtech) by gender.
From the teacher’s perspective:
Does the impact of providing only information as compared to the impact of providing detailed guidance via the technology tool change by teacher’s gender? In other words, do teachers use the information and technology guidance differently based on their gender?
Does the impact of providing only information as compared to the impact of providing detailed guidance via the technology tool change by student’s gender?
Does technology use, comfort, or access vary with teacher gender?
From the parents’ perspective:
What are the cultural norms and restrictions around parent gender and the use of technology? Do parents have equal access to technology? If so, who uses it more?
Beyond the use of technology:
Do both parents participate in the education of their child, or only the mother/father?
Are parents equally well informed about the education of their children regardless of the child’s gender?
Finally, does the gender of the child interact with the gender of the parent for all the above questions? Essentially, how does a mother interact with their son’s as compared to their daughter’s education, and how is that different from what the father does?
Although my contribution to this project is only during the summer internship, I am grateful for the opportunity to contribute towards a more gender-equal education landscape in Pakistan and I am excited to see what results the research yields.
