THE PERSPECTIVE OF GENDER

IN THE ENGLISH CLASSROOM

A case study
______________________________________________________________________

Using gamification to study gender

Laia Llobera Irun

May 2021

English Studies TFG

Tutor: Mariona Sabaté Carrové
 “It is time that we all see gender as a
spectrum instead of two sets of opposing
ideals.”
(Emma Watson)

Acknowledgements

I would like to thank the following people for their support and encouragement while
writing this paper: Mariona Sabaté for guiding and supporting me; Sònia Mas for
teaching me the importance of gender diversity; Montse Irun for sharing her expertise
in unit design.
Table of contents
Abstract ................................................................................................................... 4
Introduction ............................................................................................................. 6
Theoretical background............................................................................................ 8
A historical overview of gender perspective in education ............................................. 10
Gender perspective in Catalan schools ......................................................................... 13
Gender Perspective in the English as a Foreign Language (EFL) Classroom ............... 15
Project development ............................................................................................... 20
Data and Methodological Approach ............................................................................. 20
Instruments .................................................................................................................. 22
Analysis of the results and discussion of the students’ beliefs ....................................... 25
Analysis of the results and discussion of the teachers’ beliefs. ...................................... 31
Analysis of a textbook................................................................................................... 35
Methodological proposal based on gamification ........................................................... 37
Conclusion ............................................................................................................. 41
References ............................................................................................................. 43
Glossary of gender-related terms ............................................................................ 45
Annex .................................................................................................................... 48
Annex 1 Questionnaire for teachers.............................................................................. 48
Annex 2 Questionnaire for students.............................................................................. 59
Annex 3 Interview to the English teacher ..................................................................... 74
Annex 4 Textbook analysis ........................................................................................... 76
Abstract
Gender perspective is still a sensitive issue in the society of the 21st century. Education
seems to be the best way of making people realise that we are all equal, no matter what
our gender, sex or beliefs are. The aim of this research paper is to carry out a case study
to uncover the reality of this topic in a high school in Lleida, and more specifically, in the
English classroom. My hypothesis is that there is a lack of gender perspective in English
classrooms and that gender awareness can be enhanced while learning English. An
online survey to all the teachers of English and to all 2nd Batxillerat students in the high
school, together with an interview to their English teacher and an analysis of a unit in
their textbook were used to collect data about how gender perspective is dealt with in
a public secondary school in the city of Lleida. The results of the analysis indicated that
even if participants were aware of the importance of gender diversity, materials and
language show a bias towards stereotypes which, in my opinion, should be avoided. A
gamification unit to be implemented in the English class was also designed to deal with
the topic and, ultimately, to be used as a model for further learning experiences.

KEY WORDS: gender perspective, binary, non-binary, non-conforming, case study,

English classroom.

Abstract
La perspectiva de gènere continua sent un tema sensible a la societat del segle XXI.
L’educació sembla ser la millor manera d’adonar-se que tots som iguals,
independentment del gènere, sexe o creences que tinguem. L’objectiu d’aquest treball
de recerca és dur a terme un estudi de cas per descobrir la realitat sobre aquest tema
en un institut de Lleida i, més concretament, a l’aula d’anglès. La meva hipòtesi és que
hi ha una manca de perspectiva de gènere a les aules i que es pot millorar la consciència
de gènere mentre s’aprèn anglès. Per recopilar dades sobre com es tracta la perspectiva
de gènere a un institut públic de secundària de la ciutat de Lleida es va fer una enquesta
en línia a tots els professors d’anglès i a tots els estudiants de 2n Batxillerat de l’institut,

4
així com una entrevista a la seva professora d’anglès i una anàlisi d’una unitat del seu
llibre de text. Els resultats de l’anàlisi van indicar que, fins i tot si els participants eren
conscients de la importància de la diversitat de gènere, els materials i el llenguatge
mostren un biaix cap als estereotips que, al meu entendre, s’hauria d’evitar. També es
va dissenyar una unitat gamificada per implementar a la classe d’anglès per tractar
aquest tema i, en última instància, per utilitzar-la com a model per a experiències
d’aprenentatge posteriors.

PARAULES CLAU: perspectiva de gènere, binarisme, no binarisme, no conforme, cas

pràctic, aula d’anglès.

5
Introduction
Gender and gender diversity are, without doubt, crucial issues in the 21st century
society. No one denies that equality and inclusion are social values that a democratic
society enhances. However, there are still many preconceived notions about gender. A
common stereotype still associates high-level intellectual ability with men more than
with women (Bian, Leslie & Cimpian 2018). Catalan women earn 23% less than men for
the same job (Nació digital, 2021). Statistics do not even mention gender-neutral
people. Sexism is present in headlines, commercials, and on social media among other
contexts (González-de-Garay, Marcos-Ramos & Portillo-Delgado 2019). It is very seldom
that inclusive language is used in ordinary conversations (Djavadghazaryans, 2020).
These few examples show how much society needs to change to become an inclusive
one.

Research proves that many children assimilate the idea of gender at a young age.
(England, Descartes, & Collier-Meek 2011). Therefore, the role schools play in shaping
children’s beliefs must not be undermined. In schools, gender-neutral language and
knowledge about the existence of gender diversity must be enhanced. It is my view that
this can be done in the English class by developing communication in the foreign
language with engaging topics such as these ones can be used to foster understanding
and tolerance towards gender diversity.

The aim of this paper is to study what English teachers and students know and
think about gender and how it is dealt with in the English classroom. Gender in this paper
refers to being aware of the diverse gender identities, but also being sensitive towards
the relationships and sexualities among people. To this end, I will present a case study I
conducted in a high school in Lleida. The participants of this study were students in their
2nd year of Batxillerat and the English teachers in the high school. Two online surveys
were carried out: one for 59 students and a different one for 9 teachers. The materials
used in the English class such as textbook and digital webpages were analyzed by means
of a checklist. The regulations given by the Catalan educational department were also
taken into account to describe this issue. The analysis of the research presented
combines both quantitative and qualitative data.

6
 It is my hypothesis that, even if participants are aware of the importance of
gender diversity, materials and language show a bias towards stereotypes which, in my
opinion, should be avoided. In view of the lack of gender perspective in the English
classroom and in an attempt to integrate learning English and learning about an
essential topic, this paper includes a proposal of a gamification unit to tackle gender in
the classroom. Gamification, defined as a set of activities and processes to solve
problems by using or applying the characteristics of game elements (Negre & Carrión,
2020), will be the learning technique to encourage students’ engagement with this topic.

English lessons need engaging themes that engage students in communicating in

the target language. One of these topics may well be gender diversity as gender and
gender diversity may become excellent educational tools to familiarize students with
concepts that go far beyond language learning.

This paper is divided in three parts: the first part deals with a brief historical
overview of gender perspective in education followed by an introduction to the
programs, guidelines and ways that the Catalan government gives schools and teachers
to promote coeducation and gender perspective. The perspective of how gender and
the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer/questioning (one's sexual or gender
identity), intersex, and asexual/aromantic/agender community (henceforth LGTBQIA
community1) is included in the English as a Foreign Language (henceforth EFL) classroom
will end the first part of this theoretical background. The second part of this essay
explains a case study, with its population, methodology, data collection, results and the
discussion will be presented. The conclusions, references and a glossary end this paper.

1
https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/LGBTQIA

7
Theoretical background
Androcentrism, the domination by or emphasis of masculine interests or a
masculine point of view2, is often present in materials and school activities, where man’s
body, experiences, activities, etc. are considered as representatives of mankind. Thus,
most of us tend to consider that this angle is the “ordinary and normal”. According to
(AQUA, 2019), to analyse whether a learning practice includes gender perspective, the
language, the stereotypes and the hidden curriculum should be studied. Learning is a
social act, and as such, communication is a must. Therefore, according to AQUA,
language, be it oral or written, graphic, body or audio-visual language, plays a crucial
role.

In the ordinary world, stereotypes are readily evident as can be checked by

running a Google Search of “games for girls and “games for boys”. In Figure 1, it is clear
that games are different for girls (dolls, pink, beautiful, slim, girls) and for boy (cars,
motorcycles, video games, electronics).

Figure 1 Screen shot of the Google search "Games for Girl"s and "Games for boys"

Surveys are also powerful to analyse that male references still predominate in
our present-day world. One notices that there are no references to women in the boys’
list and only 5 (less than half) in the girls’ list.

2
https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/androcentrism

8
 Figure 2 Screenshot of the results from the news article "Yo de mayor quiero parecerme a Amancio Ortega" El País
29/07/2017

It is my view that, at school, there are also visible sexist stereotypes such as
wearing pink gowns for girls and blue ones for boys, but other stereotypes are more
invisible such as the widespread belief of considering that girls are caring, tidy, or canny
whereas boys are noisy, untidy and honest. The set of ideas, beliefs and dichotomies
that allow the maintenance of sexist stereotypes in the classroom to be "normal", the
use of non-inclusive language of both sexes, differentiated attitudes towards girls’ and
boys’ discrimination and teacher interaction differences with students based on gender
are part of the teacher’s hidden curriculum.

Common stereotypes have traditionally associated high-level intellectual ability

(brilliance, genius, etc.) with men more than women. These stereotypes discourage
women’s pursuit of many prestigious careers; that is, women are underrepresented in
fields whose members cherish brilliance (such as physics and philosophy). Bian et al
(2018) showed that these stereotypes are endorsed by, and influence the interests of,
children as young as 6. Specifically, 6-year-old girls are less likely than boys to believe
that members of their gender are “really, really smart” (p. 1139). Also at age 6, girls
begin to avoid activities said to be for children who are “really, really smart” (p. 1139).
These findings suggest that gendered notions of brilliance are acquired early and have
an immediate effect on children’s interests.

While there is a long way to go into the recognition of women as equal o men, it
is even more evident that people who do not conform to the binary system are

9
systematically excluded both in the discourse and in social institutions. (United Nations,
2016) Alesina and Giuliano (2014) (as cited in Giuliano, P., 2017) show the historical
persistence of family structures from medieval times until today and the impact of
differences in family structure on various economic outcomes, including differences in
gender roles. Even more, these differences are transmitted from parents to children and
therefore persist until today.

A historical overview of gender perspective in education

In the context of Catalonia, women have always played a relevant role in education.
Rosa Sensat, who renovated Science teaching and drove reforms in girls’ education;
Francesca Bonnemaison, whose “Biblioteca Pública de la Mujer”3 was the first feminine
public library in Europe; and Dolors Monserdà, who fought for women’s rights especially
in education, to name a few. In the XIX century, when girls started to attend primary
schools, more women became teachers. This happened as the segregated education 4
asked for women teachers to teach girls. At the beginning, women teachers did not need
to be educated as the idea was to provide girls with very basic notions. However, when
girls wanted to continue studying and pursue secondary education, they had to fight
against the idea that education was hazardous for the women’s mind and body. Women
had to marry and be “the angel in the house” (Andreu, 2011).

It was not until 1910 that the first Spanish universities accepted women in their
classrooms. In 1936, the Catalan Government published a Decree to implement
coeducation. It encountered resistance and there were different ways of understanding
coeducation. With Franco dictatorship, women teachers suffered more repression than
male teachers (28.57% of female teachers versus 24.62% of male teachers.) (Andreu,
2006).

Under Franco’s dictatorship, a concern about the normative gender and sexuality
of public-school teachers showed that a combination of gender bias, bias against

3
Public Library for Women
4
Segregated education includes special schools or classes that are only for certain students: in this
context, we refer to schools for girls and schools for boys.

10
married women, and suspicion of single women also led to strict surveillance of
teachers. Indeed, schools have long been institutions careful to ensure their employees
were normatively gendered (Blount, 2005 as cited in Mayo, C. (2014)). This was the case
of Spain but also the trend of other countries such as the United States where, during
the McCarthy era and well after, schools, too, undertook concerted efforts to remove
gay and lesbian teachers, or teachers suspected of being gay or lesbian (Graves, 2009,
as cited in Mayo, C. (2014)). So, even if schools were supposed to have dominantly
gendered and heterosexual employees, sexual and gender minorities were also teachers
and administrators (Blount, 2005 as cited in Mayo, C. (2014)).

For many years, the Spanish administration did not make any reference to this
issue because, officially, everybody was heterosexual. Resistance, interest and
oppression operated side by side. It was not until 1987, long after Franco’s death, that
the Comissió interdepartamental de la promoció de la dona was created and two years
later l’Institut Català de la Dona was founded as an autonomous department.

It was only after 2014 that other genders were also included in this gender
perspective. That year, law 11/2014 of 10 October per a garantir els drets de lesbianes,
gais, bisexuals, transgèneres i intersexuals i erradicar l’homofòbia, bifòbia i transfòbia5
was passed by the Catalan Parliament.

Article 12. Educació

1. Als efectes d’aquesta llei, s’entén per coeducació l’acció educativa que
potencia la igualtat real d’oportunitats i l’eliminació de qualsevol mena de
discriminació per raó d’orientació sexual, identitat de gènere o expressió de
gènere.
2. D’acord amb aquest principi de coeducació, s’ha de vetllar perquè la
diversitat sexual i afectiva, la identitat de gènere i els diferents models de
família siguin respectats en els diferents àmbits educatius.
3. El principi de coeducació s’ha d’incorporar als plans d’acció tutorial i als plans
i reglaments de convivència dels centres educatius.
4. Els continguts dels materials escolars, educatius i formatius, en qualsevol
format, i el llenguatge que s’hi empri han de tenir en compte la diversitat pel
que fa a l’orientació sexual, la identitat de gènere i l’expressió de gènere i evitar
qualsevol mena de discriminació per aquest motiu.

5
to guarantee the rights of lesbians, gays, bisexuals, transgender and intersex people and to eradicate
homophobia, biphobia and transphobia

11
 5. El respecte a la diversitat pel que fa a l’orientació sexual, la identitat de
gènere o l’expressió de gènere i als principis d’aquesta llei ha d’ésser efectiu en
tot el sistema educatiu, en els centres i entitats de formació, en l’educació
d’adults, en la formació de mares i pares, en les activitats esportives escolars i
en les activitats de lleure infantil i juvenil.
6. S’ha de vetllar per la conscienciació i la prevenció de la violència per raó
d’orientació sexual, identitat de gènere o expressió de gènere i oferir
mecanismes als centres perquè detectin situacions de discriminació o exclusió
de qualsevol persona per les dites raons. En aquest sentit, s’ha de promoure el
desplegament efectiu de plans de convivència amb un èmfasi especial en les
mesures de prevenció i d’actuació contra l’assetjament de què poden ésser
objecte les persones LGBTI en el medi escolar.
7. L’Administració de la Generalitat, per mitjà del departament competent en
matèria d’educació, ha de garantir el desplegament del que estableix aquest
article i ha de vetllar perquè les escoles, els instituts i els altres centres educatius
constitueixin un entorn amable per a la diversitat sexual i afectiva en què els
alumnes i els professors puguin viure d’una manera natural llur orientació
sexual, identitat de gènere o expressió de gènere, i es contribueixi així a la
creació de models positius per a la comunitat educativa.
In 2017, several protocols were also published based on this law to be activated in
case of bullying and harassment for gender and gender diversity reasons. These
protocols have to be included in the School “projecte de Convivència”. In 2018, the
document “Orientacions sobre el tractament de la igualtat de gènere i la diversitat
cultural en el material didàctic”6 was published by Direcció General d’Atenció a la Família
I Comunitat Educativa del Departament d’Educació de la Generalitat de Catalunya. In
the 2019-2020 school year, the Department of Education launched the COEDUCA’T
Program, to help schools strengthen and make visible the gender perspective, co-
education and affective-sexual education.

To use inclusive and non-stereotyped language, the Catalan Government Institut

Català de les Dones published “Receptes per visibilitzar les dones en l’àmbit de
l’educació”7 in 2015, and in 2019 Departament of Education published “Tractament
linguistic del gènere en el Departament d’Educació”8 to promote the use of inclusive
language in education.

6
Guidelines on the treatment of gender equality and cultural diversity in teaching materials
7
Recipes for making women visible in the field of education
8
Linguistic treatment of gender in the Department of Education

12
Gender perspective in Catalan schools

Gender, as one of many important facets of social identity, interacts with race, ethnicity,
class, sexuality, (dis)ability, age, and social status in framing students’ learning
experiences, trajectories, and outcomes (Norton & Pavlenko (2004: 504). That might be
the reason why the educational authorities in many countries have included gender
perspective in their curriculums or practices. Coeducation puts at the center of
education not just concepts to be learnt but also actions and attitudes to be taken in the
new social way of living that helps us to get rid of old prejudices. However, it is worth
noting that till very recently, co-education meant that girls and boys, women and men
and other gender identities were invisibilized.

In the last few years, actions to prevent sexual and gender discrimination have
been taken by the Catalan administration. A webpage9 devoted to coeducation and
gender equality is regularly updated since its design where families, schools and
teachers can find resources, experiences, training, laws, bibliography and protocols to
deal with strategies that can modify power relations, abuse, and stereotyped limitations
for each gender, becoming true agents of transformation. It is the Educational
Department belief that co-educational actions at schools and classrooms are critical to
prevent gender-based and LGTBQAIphobic10 violence, reducing risky behaviours, and to
facilitate the early detection of abusive relationships.

In line with this principle, in April 2018 Direcció general d’Atenció a la Família i
Comunitat Educativa published “Orientacions sobre el tractament de la igualtat de
gènere i la diversitat cultural en el material didàctic”11 whose aims among others are to
enhance gender equality so that students can be educated in spaces free of stereotypes
and gender roles, and to ensure academic and professional guidance free of sexist and
androcentric biases.

The Catalan Education Department launched the Coeduca’t Program12 in 2021,

whose aim is to collaborate with nursery, primary, and secondary schools to work out

9
http://xtec.gencat.cat/ca/curriculum/coeducacio/
10
A negative attitude towards LGBT people.
11
Guidelines on the treatment of gender equality and cultural diversity in teaching materials
12
https://blocs.xtec.cat/coeducacioiigualtat/

13
explicit, systematic, rigorous and respectful, basic aspects of co-education, perspective
of gender and sexuality. The program trains teachers and schools so that the curriculum
and the learning practices incorporate the gender perspective explicitly, provides with
questionnaires to make a diagnosis of the state of the question at various levels, and
also supplies teachers with resources and materials to be implemented in the classroom.

Figure 3 Screenshot of the Decalogue to incorporate the gender perspective and co-education in the curriculum.
Department of Education

In April 2021 the Catalan Education Department published “Guia per a

l’elaboració del Projecte de Convivència” (Guide to design the Coexistence Project)13
where the school organise their protocols to implement and assess the prevention,
detection and intervention in case of bullying to a LGTBQIA+ person.

Another aspect to tap on is the fact that from 2018, all the oposiciones14 include
gender perspective as one of the elements that have to be prioritised in the exam:
“Inclusivitat i perspectiva de gènere: enfocament inclusiu, tracte respectuós a les

13
http://xtec.gencat.cat/ca/centres/projeducatiu/convivencia/protocols/assetjament-escolar-persones-
lgbti/index.html
14
Exams that teachers have to take in order to access a teaching post in a state school.

14
diferències, exemplificacions de diferents gèneres, i absència de discriminacions i
estereotips de gènere en les exposicions i en les propostes didàctiques”15. Even more, an
indicator to assess the syllabus, the unit and its presentation is “Adequació de la
proposta: al context, a la normativa curricular i a la perspectiva de gènere”16.

All the above examples illustrate the importance that the Catalan government
places on gender perspective in the classroom: it is a prerequisite to access a teaching
post, training to cater for gender diversity is abundant, and protocols to deal with
LGTBQIA and gender discrimination are mandatory for all schools.

Gender Perspective in the English as a Foreign Language (EFL) Classroom

When studying gender perspective in the classroom, there are three main issues to take
into account: the curriculum, the language used and the teaching practices. This section
discusses how English language teachers address gender in the classroom will be
discussed.

Curriculum and hidden curriculum

Hidden curriculum refers to the unwritten, unofficial, and often unintended lessons,
values, and perspectives that students learn in school; rules and behaviours that we all
seem to know but were never taught (Arterian, 2009). Sociologists Heaton and Lawson
(1996) argue that the ‘hidden’ curriculum is a major source of gender socialisation within
schools. They believe that schools seemed to show textbooks with males that are
dominant within the family. They also provide evidence that supports the fact that
various subjects are aimed at a certain gender group, for example Food Technology
would be aimed at females, leading on to the typical role of females doing housework
and cooking. Sports is also mentioned as an example of this hidden curriculum: boys
play rugby and cricket while girls play netball and rounders. Another point they also
point out is the fact that the majority of teachers are female, but that the management

15
Inclusiveness and gender perspective: inclusive approach, respectful treatment of differences,
examples of different genders, and absence of discrimination and gender stereotypes in exhibitions and
teaching proposals.
http://educacio.gencat.cat/web/.content/home/arees-actuacio/professors/oposicions/ingres-acces-
cossos-docents/2019/orientacions-criteris-avaluacio/cos-professors-ensenyament-secundari/angles.pdf
16
Adequacy of the proposal: to the context, to the curricular regulations and to the gender perspective.

15
positions are mainly male-dominated, although this is not the case in some schools. In
the same line, Stromquist et al. (1998, as cited in Mustapha, 2015) adds that the way
teachers treat male and female students and the manner in which adults interact with
others are also part of the hidden curriculum. As can be seen the hidden curriculum is
present in many aspects of the school life.

In the curriculum, gender perspective can also be included in a more explicit way.
Even if there is no reference to it in the curriculum of most subjects in high school, there
is a cross curricular competence, “Personal and Social Domain”, that has to be
developed in all subjects that says, “la pràctica educativa, guiada pel principi de
coeducació, ha de potenciar la construcció de les identitats personals, culturals o de
gènere des del respecte a la diversitat, i ha de fomentar el desenvolupament integral de
tots els alumnes.”17 Of course, apart from this explicit reference, curricular innovation,
that is, creating new programs and classes that address stereotypes dealing with gender
diversity, could also be developed. When we rethink the curriculum from gender
perspective, it is not a matter of adding contents, but of reflecting to “deconstruct” what
we do in the classroom and in the school under a shared gaze. López (2021) (cited in
Oliver 2021) found out that only 7.6% of the figures in Catalan and Spanish textbooks
were women. She also pointed out that we have to “trenzar un discurso cultural,
científico e histórico de mujeres y hombres. Sin focalizarlo en ellas, pero con ellas"18.

Language

Gender-neutral language is a generic term covering the use of non-sexist language,

inclusive language or gender-fair language. The purpose of gender-neutral language is
to avoid word choices which may be interpreted as biased, discriminatory, or demeaning
by implying that one sex or social gender is the norm. Nonbinary students’ identities are
erased by subjecting them to the binary of male–female. Djavadghazaryans, A. (2020)
argues that teaching a grammatically gendered language creates an exclusionary

17
educational practice, guided by the principle of co-education, must promote the construction of
personal, cultural or gender identities out of respect for diversity, and must encourage the integral
development of all
students.http://educacio.gencat.cat/web/.content/home/departament/publicacions/colleccions/compe
tencies-basiques/eso/ambit-personal-social.pdf
18
to weave a cultural, scientific and historical discourse of women and men. Without focusing on them,
but with them

16
classroom environment as non-binary students feel excluded and, also, neglects to
acknowledge that gender nonbinary communities are part of the target language
community. The lack of awareness of the connection between grammatical and social
gender and its effects on nonbinary students as well as the limited efforts to address
these challenges lead to an absence of inclusive vocabulary and teaching materials.

Foreign language teachers increasingly face challenges in the classroom that

arise through structures inherent in highly gendered languages. In fact, teachers are
often unaware or uncertain whether gender-neutral conventions exist and what
strategies are available to address the concerns of grammatical gender in regard to
inclusivity. (Djavadghazaryans, A., 2020). Many languages assign humans a gender
based on a rigid binary gender system, which reflects patriarchy, heterosexism, and
gender normativity. In English, this includes use of nouns that are not gender-specific to
refer to roles or professions, as well as avoidance of the pronouns he, him and his to
refer to people of unknown or indeterminate gender. For example, the words
“policeman” and “stewardess” are gender-specific job titles; the corresponding gender-
neutral terms are “police officer” and “flight attendant”. Other gender-specific terms,
such as “actor” and “actress”, may be replaced by the originally male term; for example,
“actor” used regardless of gender. Some terms, such as “chairman”, that contain the
component -man but have traditionally been used to refer to persons regardless of sex
are now seen by some as gender-specific. Nissen, 2002 (as cited in Djavadghazaryans,
2020). elaborates on the choice of pronoun for occupations such as lawyer (he), dentist
(he), or nurse (she) being linked to stereotypical classifications.

When the gender of the person referred to is unknown or indeterminate, the

third-person pronoun “he” may be avoided by using gender-neutral alternatives –
possibilities in English include singular “they”, “he” or “she”, or “s/he”.

Teaching Practices

Teachers can engage learners in critical reflection by incorporating gender issues into
already existing classes. Teaching practices, materials, and activities that includes
gender perspective and topic management are examples of different ways to do so.

17
 Teachers need to be well-prepared to handle such topics, while maintaining
positive dynamics in the classroom. In fact, they may do best by being proactive, as EFL
and ESL classrooms represent unique spaces where different linguistic and cultural
worlds come into contact. Language classrooms offer unparalleled opportunities to
engage in debates, talks, reflection about gender and sexuality (Norton & Pavlenko,
2004).

Resources are worth mentioning as they are the main means to transmit
concepts and values. Apart from textbooks, in the English class, many different types of
resources can be used: worksheets designed by teachers, realia, flashcard, videos and
everything that can be found using the Internet. However, for the purpose of this study,
the textbook is the only resource that has been studied from the gender perspective.

Textbooks comprise a large part of the English classroom resources. Therefore,

it is crucial that they spread equal notions for all genders in order to achieve a more
diverse and culturally rich classroom. Textbooks are not only transmitters of knowledge
and concepts, but they also spread stereotypes and prejudices that help the reader
overgeneralize these gender roles and feed the idea that what is shown in textbook is
an accurate depiction of the world.

It is of great importance for gender roles to be represented fairly in textbooks.

Otherwise, students draw from a “hidden curriculum” by noticing

“the number of women who are featured in textbooks, for example, in

leadership roles, the number of times females in foreign-language textbooks
initiate a discussion, the professional roles that men and women in textbooks
tend to take up, the types of adjectives and nouns which are used to describe
women and men, the tasks associated with women and men, the locations
which are associated with women and men, the position and prominence of
men and women in images and so on” (Mustapha & Mills, 2015: 5-6).

Textbooks seem to have fewer females than males, they play fewer and more
menial occupational roles, they are represented in relation to men and are presented as
timid and emotional. Males start conversations and some textbooks even show blatant

18
sexism to the point of misogyny. (Sunderland 1994:55-56 as cited in Mustapha, A. S., &
Mills, S., 2015: 13).

In a study carried out by Blumberg (2007 as cited in Mustapha, A. S., & Mills, S.,
2015), of 23 textbooks published from 1998 to 2001, the progress found was “minimal
and disappointing” as all were “far from gender equitable”. However, these were less
offensive as time went by. Progressive texts, despite being reported in the West and
some parts of Asia, have not been studied in some other underdeveloped countries such
as Africa.

Studies regarding textbooks have largely been focused on content analysis and do
not confront the way teachers address these texts. The way in which these texts are
addressed or whether they are addressed or not, would significantly impact the
outcome of using them in schools. Even balanced and progressive texts could have a
negative impact depending on the teacher’s treatment from the text (Mustapha, A. S.,
& Mills, S., 2015).

Research on gender and representation in textbooks so far, has been concerned

with the representation of cis, white, heterosexual men versus cis, white, heterosexual
women and more research needs to be done through a queer perspective to further
representation of LGTBQIA+ people (Mustapha, A. S., & Mills, S., 2015). Many teachers
and researchers are now questioning whether texts should reflect society as it is
nowadays or showcase the desired equalitarian society, which we are far from
achieving.

19
Project development
My interest is to study gender perspective in the English classroom and discover the
reality of how gender is dealt with in that context.

In order to throw some light on this controversial issue, two research questions
were posed in this study:

(i) Is there a lack of gender perspective in the English classrooms?

(ii) How can we enhance gender awareness in the English classroom?

Data and Methodological Approach

My hypothesis is that, even if participants are aware of the importance of gender
diversity, materials and language show a bias towards stereotypes which, in my opinion,
should be avoided. In order to corroborate or refute it, a case study was designed to
analyse how gender perspective is dealt with in a public secondary school in the city of
Lleida. The case study consisted of

a) an online survey to all the teachers of English in the high school

b) an online survey to all 2nd Batxillerat (hence forth baccalaureate)19 students in
the high school
c) an interview to their English teacher
d) an analysis of a unit in their textbook

In an attempt to enhance gender awareness in the English class, a gamification unit

was designed to show that this topic can be implemented in an English class and to serve
as a model for English teaching.

The school is situated in the outskirts of the city and has earned a reputation of being
an innovative educational institution. It is a public school founded in 1972 which
provides compulsory secondary education to students from 12 to 16 and post
compulsory education both baccalaureate or vocational training courses on sports.

19
2nd batxillerat corresponds to 12th grade / senior year in the USA and year 13 in Great Britain.

20
According to its webpage20, they foster rigorousness so that all students achieve their
best, both academically and as a person.

The school has a coeducation plan, one of its objectives being to overcome sexism
and androcentrism. In fact, the most noticeable aspect that one sees when one enters
the school is a mural painting that shows the school‘s compromise with gender equality.

Image 1 Mural painting at the school hall "Les Nostres Mans en Lluita"

There is a well-established calendar and activities that all students carry out but
the activities focus on the binary system and women’s empowerment. Different
sexualities are not mentioned but one of the objectives is to educate and guarantee
equal opportunities without gender discrimination.21

20
https://insjoanoro.cat/el-centre/
21
https://insjoanoro.cat/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/PEC.pdf page 125

21
Instruments
In order to analyse the students’ beliefs, what and how they were taught, I conducted
an online survey. The survey was answered in the English class in the second term of the
year. All students in class agreed to answer the questionnaire, which was anonymous.
A total of 52 students answered the survey that was designed with Google Forms which
can be consulted in Annex 1.

The survey consisted of 30 questions divided into two parts: the first one was
about personal data, and the second part was about their opinions and beliefs on
gender. Apart from the seven personal questions in the beginning and the two last
multiple-choice questions, most questions followed the Likert rating Scale, which is a
validated, five-point scale used to measure people’s degree of agreement or
disagreement with a given statement (McLeod, 2019). The Likert scale was appropriate
in this study to measure what students thought and knew about gender.

As many as 25 boys, 26 girls and one non-binary person from 16 to 19 years old
took part in this survey.22 In relation to sex, 25 students had male genitalia and 27
students had female genitalia, and from these 52 students, 36 of them were part or
knew someone who was part of the LGBTQIA+ community.

*23

Figure 4 2nd Batxillerat students’ gender

Figure 5 Students' relationship to LGTBQIA+Community

22
See Annex 1
23
*All the decimals in Figures 4 to 26 show a comma, where a point should be more appropriate. I am
aware of that, but Google Forms automatically generates such punctuation.

22
 To analyse the teachers’ beliefs and what they did in the classroom, another
similar online survey was carried out to the 8 English teachers of the high school. The
survey, designed with Google Forms was sent via mail in the second term of the
academic year 2020-2021.24 Teachers gave their consent by proceeding to take the
questionnaire.

The survey, which was anonymous, had a total of 34 questions divided into two
parts: the first part consisted of 6 personal data questions, and the second part had 6
multiple choice questions and 22 Likert questions about their opinions on gender and
how they approached it in the classroom.

From the all-female teachers, one was between 35 and 45, four were between
46 and 55 and three were between 56 and 65. 87.5% of them were not a part or were
not close to a member of the LGTBQIA+ community in relation to the 12.5% that were25.
All the teachers claimed that they knew the difference between sex and gender. Six of
them had been taught sex and/or gender education without actively seeking it
themselves (as part of the high school’s policies, at school, at university, etc.) but 2 had
not.

Figure 6 School English teachers' genders

Figure 7 English teachers' relationship to LGTBQIA+ community

24
See Annex 2.
25
See Annex 2.

23
 In order to corroborate some of the findings and to learn about other class
practices, an informal non-structured interview was carried out in April, 2021 to the 2nd
Batxillerat English teacher, which can be found in Annex 3. Prior to the interview, the
teacher gave her consent. This teacher, henceforth teacher T, had answered the survey
before the interview was recorded. She is an experienced teacher who has been
teaching baccalaureate for more than 20 years. She not only participates in training
courses but is also a teacher trainer herself. She is the head of the foreign languages
department when this research was carried out.

Finally, the textbook used in the classroom was analysed by means of a checklist,
which was designed based on the literature previously exposed. The checklist, which can
be found in Annex 4, had nine features that were not only quantified but also described
when necessary. The textbook students followed was Advantage 2, written by E. Grant
and S. Carter, published by Burlington Books in 2018. The textbook, also used in many
similar high schools in Catalonia and Spain, has six units plus an introductory one and an
appendix with sections on culture, grammar, pronunciation, glossary and functional
language. The topics od the textbook were: travelling, health, entertainment, work,
crime and environment. All the units followed the same structure: they started with a
picture, a quote and a list of contents followed by some vocabulary exercises and a
listening. The next two pages were devoted to reading and two more pages to grammar.
Some more exercises on vocabulary and another listening text follows. One page is
devoted to promoting speaking and the last activity in the unit is on writing. The unit
ended with a review of vocabulary and some exercises on like skills.

For the purpose and scope of this study, a unit was chosen to be analysed. As
seen in the introduction, women earn less than men when doing the same job (Nació
digital, 2021). The topic of inequality of this unit was the reason why I chose it for the
analysis. In the textbook, this corresponds to unit number 4, which coincided with the
unit students were dealing with when they answered the survey.

The research, thus, combined quantitative and qualitative data, which allowed a
triangulation of the results and increased the validity of the case study.

24
Analysis of the results and discussion of the students’ beliefs
When asked if students were aware of the difference between sex and gender, 80.8%
of students claimed they were, 17.3% claimed they were not, and 1.9% were not sure.
However, when asked what gender was, 90.4% of the students chose the correct
definition. 65.4% of the students affirmed that they had been taught gender or sex
education in educational contexts such as the school or high school. However, 26.9%
claimed that they had not, and the rest (7.6%) claimed that it was too poor and/or basic.

Fifty-two per cent of students regard that student and family diversity is quite
visible and accepted by everyone at school. Twenty-three per cent expressed that they
did not believe diversity was visible at school whereas the other 25% remained
impartial. These results seem to dispute Alesina and Giuliano (2014) as they believed
that traditional family structures still persist today, but it seems that all family
structures are visible and accepted in this school.

None A lot

Figure 8 Diversity acceptance at school

34.6% of the students thought that it was completely impossible for people to
turn gay, lesbian, trans, etc. if they were talked about gender or sexual identities while
23.1% thought that there was a big probability of it happening. The rest of them moved
in-between the two statements with 13.5% leaning more towards the “no” and 17.3%
leaning towards the “yes”. The other 11.5% remained impartial. With more than half of
the students (51,9%) doubting or affirming that your gender identity or sexual
orientation can be changed due to the information you receive, it seems that students
are misinformed and have not been taught that these identities are something people

25
are born with. These results are in line with the orientations included in the
“Orientacions sobre el tractament de la igualtat de gènere i la diversitat cultural en el
material didàctic”26 published by Direcció General d’Atenció a la Família I Comunitat
Educativa del Departament d’Educació de la Generalitat de Catalunya in 2018.

Never Yes, it’s possible

Figure 9 Beliefs of becoming gay, lesbians or trans, if information is provided

Forty-eight students believe that being non-normative (gay, lesbian, trans,

bisexual, intersex, etc.) does not have a direct connection with being mentally ill. Only 3
students doubted, and 1 student believed that it was possible. This preposterous notion
used to be accepted not many years ago (as being Gay was still considered a mental
disorder by the World Health Organization until 1992). The fact that almost all of the
students clearly know that being non-normative does not imply having a mental illness
shows societal progress. This result confirms the findings in Blount (2005, cited in Mayo
(2014) when he states that society has made a long way towards the acceptance of non-
conforming-genders.

Forty-nine students agreed that it was important to know about gender on some
level and only 3 did not. However, when asked if they were interested, opinions varied
from “Not at all” to “A lot”, despite more people leaning towards “A lot”. This comes to
show that almost all students know that it is a crucial topic to be informed about,
whether they were interested in the topic or not. This is in line with the guidelines in the
several programmes launched by the Departament d’Educació de la Generalitat de
Catalunya, such as COEDUCAT.

26
Guidelines on the treatment of gender equality and cultural diversity in teaching materials

26
 Not at all A lot

Figure 10 Importance of learning gender perspective

Not at all A lot

Figure 11 Degree of interest in learning gender perspective

Most students have never or almost never felt excluded due to their sexual or
gender identity by the teachers (94.2%) or their fellow classmates (90.4%) at school.
Two of the students that felt excluded were cis heterosexual males without loved ones
in the LGTBQIA+ community but the remaining 6 were either part of the LGTBQIA+
Community or were close to someone who was. From this, we infer that non-normative
students who are part of the LGBTQIA+ Community are a large part of those who have
felt excluded based on that premise.

Never Often

Figure 12 Students' feelings of teachers' discrimination

27
 Never Often

Figure 13 Students' feelings of peers' discrimination

Most students felt comfortable and identified with the situations, examples and
topics in both the English class (88.3%) and the rest of the subjects (92.3%). However,
11.7% did not identify or felt comfortable with these in the English classroom. As half of
these were part or knew someone who was a part of the LGBTQIA+ Community, it may
be a contributing factor. It is also worth mentioning that a student specified that when
talking about sexuality, only heterosexuality and homosexuality is usually discussed and
when studying history, the LGBTQIA+ fight is not dealt with. This confirms our hypothesis
that as regards sexual orientation, only heteronormativity and homosexuality are made
salient but that other sexual orientations are disregarded, and that gender perspective
is treated as an isolated topic not worth integrating into other subjects.

The majority of the students were addressed with their preferred pronouns by both
students and teachers and the only non-normative person (non-binary) stated that he
was normally addressed with his preferred pronouns. This indicates that there is no
gender discrimination as regards preferred pronouns. This result confirms the
expectations provided in the “Tractament linguistic del gènere en el Departament
d’Educació”27 (2019) to promote the use of inclusive language in education.

Eighty-two point three per cent of the students believed that schools’ premises
and/or common areas had to be adapted on some level to create a safe space for the
different gender identities. However, 17.6% did not give it importance. When we asked
them whether their premises and/or common areas were adapted to create a safe space
for the different gender identities or not, the group that said that they were, but not a

27
Linguistic treatment of gender in the Department of Education

28
lot, was the most prominent (30%). Twenty-eight per cent of them stated that they were
quite adapted and 42% said that they were not at all or barely adapted. We see that
despite students thinking that it is quite a crucial topic, the premises and/or shared areas
were not considered adapted to all gender identities.

Students claimed that offensive words that regard gender identity or sexual
orientation were normally heard as insults (92,2%). However, a lot of them never or
almost never did something about it (27%). This shows that, despite being aware of the
discrimination, students are reluctant to act upon it, reinforcing gender-based
intolerance. As was seen in the literature review, there are some programmes designed
by the Departament d’Educació that aim at solving this situation.

Not at all A lot

Figure 14 Frequency of gender-based insults

Never Always
Figure 15 Reaction to gender-based insults

Most students pointed out that they first started receiving gender or sexual
education from the school during the Early Adolescence (54.9%), 13.7% said that it was

29
during childhood and 31.4% during middle-late adolescence. This is controversial as Bian
et al (2018)’s findings show that gender stereotypes start as early as in childhood.

Figure 16 Age students started gender education

From the various places that students were asked where they learned or heard
of some gender related concepts, the one with most votes was social media. Their
personal life (family, friends, etc.) came in second place, school came in third and
workshops outside school came in last. The fact that school came in next to last is quite
concerning.

The most prominent voted topics learned in school were Equality (80.9%),
Feminism (76.6%), Human rights (72.3%) and the least were Non-binarism (19.1%),
Asexuality (19.1%), Pansexuality (17%) and Heteronormativity (21.3%). With these
ratings, we see that students have been frequently taught equality between binary
genders and binary sexual orientations, but they have rarely been taught outside the
binary system with regards to gender and sexuality. This corroborates the findings in
Norton and Pavlenko (2004).

30
 Figure 17 Topics dealt with at school

Analysis of the results and discussion of the teachers’ beliefs.

It is evident from the results that there is one teacher that does not consider
gender perspective or sexual orientation an issue at school whereas the rest of the
teachers do. However, there is no agreement when dealing with the age when these
topics have to be dealt with. The students and the teachers, who consider that gender
education should start at adolescence, coincide, but as Bian et al (2018)’s findings show,
gender stereotypes start as early as in childhood.

Figure 18 Appropriate age to present gender perspective

This discrepancy is maintained in the rest of the questions. Even if most teachers
believe gender is related to basic social organization and can be related to the

31
curriculum, 2 teachers think that it is an isolated issue to be dealt with only at certain
moments.

They all agree that the school tends to use inclusive language in their documents
and when addressing students or families, but do not coincide to what extent it does.
This is in line with the guidelines published by the programme COEDUCAT (Departament
d’Educació, 2020).

In relation to the English class, 50% of the teachers in the school state that they
pay attention to gender perspective. However, when dealing with these topics in the
English class and even if they all accept the fact that dealing with gender diversity can
be effective to teach students equality among genders and English at the same time, it
seems that only three teachers bear in mind gender when selecting the materials to be
used in class. These teachers point out that, mainly, they themselves design activities
that deal with these topics or comment on gender roles whenever possible. It is
surprising that none of them mention the textbook as a source of these activities but
emphasize the fact that they themselves design the activities or units.

Figure 19 Percentage of teachers that pay attention to gender perspective

Figure 20 Teachers that pay attention to Gender Perspective

These three teachers pay attention to the materials they select so that they
include both men and women characters, but this drops dramatically when asked about

32
nonbinary characters or transgender or intersex. It is also interesting to point out that
homosexuality is accepted as normal, but not other sexual orientations.

Gender neutral language is another aspect where opinions do not coincide. Most
of them do not choose texts that include gender neutral language, but use it when
talking to their students. In fact, only one person does not. It is probable that texts are
chosen in relation to the objective they aim at and language is not taken into account.

Figure 21 Percentatge of teachers that pay attention to intersex characters

Human rights and equality are the topics that all teachers feel comfortable with
and 75% of the teachers have dealt with them in class. Again, this proves that teachers
have interiorized the issue of men and women equality but do not regard other gender
identities, sexual orientations, non-normative behaviours, non-conforming bodies, etc.
This again corroborates the findings in Norton and Pavlenko (2004).

Figure 22 Gender topic dealt with in class

33
 Figure 23 Gender topics teachers are more confortable with

Even if all the teachers in the school think that it is important that students get
the right information about sexual diversity, they do not think that schools have to
change their facilities and shared areas to create a gender equality environment, such
as non-binary bathrooms for example. However, they consider that the school facilities
and shared areas are adequate to create gender equality. It is again clear that the
teachers are well aware of promoting equality between women and men, but they do
not take into account other genders or sexual orientations, even if they do not allow
name calling that includes sexual orientation.

Figure 24 School facilities that cater for gender diversity

So as to the teachers’ training, only two teachers knew about Coeducat, the
program designed by the Departament d’Educació to help schools to introduce gender
perspective in the curriculum and in the schools, and only one has attended a training

34
course on gender perspective. It is obvious, then, that most teachers need more training
on this issue.

The interview with teacher T corroborated the findings. She agrees that teachers
are well aware of the fact that men and women should be treated equally and that has
to be evident in the pictures, texts, and resources used in the English class. She also
agrees that the issue deserves specific activities or units to talk to the students directly.
Finally, she also points out the attention paid to inclusive language. However, as the
data from the survey shows, teacher T admits that non binary, non-normative
behaviours, non-conforming bodies are not considered in the English even if there are
some students that are trans.

Analysis of a textbook
In the unit analysed there are 26 pictures of men and 11 of women and there not
a single one where a nonbinary person is presented. These figures show that men have
a predominant role in the unit. This corroborates López (2021) (cited in Oliver 2021) who
states that only 7.6% of figures in textbooks are women. Even more, men are video
games testers, office workers, professor at university, economist, delivery person and it
is also a man the one who provides tips for a successful presentation. Women, on the
other hand, are panda huggers or technical support representative. In the rest of the
pictures, women are students or they are trying on dresses, which is one of the
stereotypes.

There is only one instance of famous people in the unit and they are men as it is
a picture and a text about the Beatles. Again, the role of famous women or non-binary
people are omitted.

Only one picture of a family and it shows a boy and his father painting a wall. The
unit, being about work, does not provide opportunities to show families so no
conclusions can be drawn just for this picture.

In the unit, men relax by playing video games or going to the bar whereas only
one woman is in the bar and two women are trying dresses in a shop. No non-binary
person is represented in any way.

35
 6
5
4
3
2
1
0

Women Men non binary

Figure 25 Men's and women's roles in the unit

So as to the listening text, the first oral text in the unit is a conversation between
two friends -a man and a woman- talking about internship and summer jobs. Neither of
them presents the man as superior and both speakers seem to have the same number
of turns, the same expertise and both are in the same power position. In fact, the man
starts the conversation in one of the cases and the woman in the second one.

The second oral text in the unit is a radio interview where the journalist is a man
and the expert on “unboxing” is a woman. In this case the interviewer is who starts the
conversation as the genre rules. The third oral text is a job interview but, in this case,
both speakers are women.

The reading text in the unit is an extract from a short story by R.K. Narayan. The
story, set in India, is about a family made up of a mother, a father, and a daughter. The
father is the one who goes out to work and brings money to the house. However, as it
is an excerpt, we cannot take it into account for this analysis.

The sentences in the grammar or vocabulary exercises refer to both men and
women or avoid referring to one in concrete. There are 25 sentences in total in the
vocabulary exercises; 16 of them do not refer to a gender; 4 refer to male characters
and 5 to women characters. There is, therefore, a balance in the use of both genders.
The same happens in the grammar activities where most sentences do not refer to

36
either men or women. It is also clear that there is an inclusive use of language and, when
possible, there is a reference to “people”, interviewer” or “boss”, words that are not
gender-marked.

It is evident that textbooks have changed a lot since the 90s, and even if there is
a nonsexist use of the language and that women appear in the unit as they are also
present in the job market, there are several stereotypes specially in the images.

We can conclude that images still show a very traditional woman not just
because of the number of times she appears but also because of the type of jobs they
have or the hobbies they have. Even more, the unit does not include any reference to
homosexuality or non-binary people. This seems to corroborate the conclusion drawn
from the surveys to the teachers and also to the students: Gender perspective is taken
into account in some aspects of the English class but the LGTBIQ+ community is not. It
also is in line with Djavadghazaryans, A. (2020) when he states that non-binary students’
identities are erased by subjecting them to the binary of male–female.

Methodological proposal based on gamification

Contrary to what teachers answered, students were at ease with all the topics
presented. This corroborates the students’ view that these topics are not dealt with
enough in school.

Figure 26 Topics Students were confortable with

37
 As one of the students pointed out “s’hauria d’incloure no com una assignatura
… però si directament o indirecta a totes les classes de totes les assignatures de tots els
cursos. … Si es parla de feminisme, que es parli de micromasclisme que la majoria no
veu, i si es parla de sexualitat, que es parli de les orientacions sexuals, que se escolti a
persones intersexuals que han hagut de passar per operacions innecessàries o gent en
general del col.lectiu LGTBI+”28. Most of the students seem to share this view and this
coincides with the teachers’ and teacher T’s opinions.

As the case study suggests that there is a need to deal with queer and non-
normative people, I have decided to design a unit on this issue. I designed the unit
following a methodology called game-based learning, where game characteristics and
principles are embedded within the unit. In fact, students learn because they actively
engage in the game and, thus, learning is enhanced. Even more, by playing the game,
students learn English and also develop critical thinking and problem-solving skills.

The unit is, in fact, a digital breakout, a digital game where students work
collaboratively to solve puzzles while learning. It is an escape-room experience but using
digital clues instead of locks and physical clues (Negre & Carrión, 2020).

What follows is the basic planning of the unit where the narrative, objectives,
and timing are described.

Title The Imperfects

Link https://view.genial.ly/60b929f8a37efc0dbb8d53ba

English level B2

Timing 4 hours

Objective Produce oral and written texts which are adequate to the
communicative purpose and linguistically correct.

28
It should not be a subject … but in all lessons in all subjects all the years in a direct or indirect way. If
feminism is talked about, micro-sexism, which not everybody sees, must also be talked about. And if
sexuality is discussed, one should discuss about sexual orientations, listen to intersexual people who had
to suffer unnecessary operations, or people form the LGTBI+ community [Author’s own translation]

38
 Understand and value LGTBQIA+ community.

Grouping Groups of three

A group of gender queer people are secluded in an island because they

Narrative do not follow the standard rules. Together with a group of allies that
live in the normalised society called Cisland, they try to escape the
island and build a more inclusive society.
Table 1 Digital Breakout Planning

The teacher tells students that there is a new world called Cisland where only CIS
heterosexual men and women live freely. Students, however, are secluded in an island
as they belong to the Imperfects, a group of people that do not conform to the rules and
standards of this new world. From time to time, allies from the new world outside the
island send them hints and clues to help them. The teacher, then, urges students to
follow the instructions on the webpage which is shared with them. Students, in groups
of three, read the instructions and do the different activities together. All the activities
present challenges that deal with gender-related topics. Students get awards that they
may need later, or they are provided with clues to open the different locks that will help
them get out of the island. It is by solving challenges that students will learn about
gender-related topics in English and, hopefully, they will be able to put themselves in
the non-normative people’s shoes.

Figure 27 Screenshot of the Introduction to the unit

39
Figure 28 Screenshots of some activities in the unit

40
Conclusion
This paper studied gender perspective in the English classroom and aimed at discovering
the reality of how gender is dealt with in that context. Both the bibliographical research
and the case study showed that there is a lack of gender diversity representation in the
English classroom. My initial hypothesis was that, even if participants are aware of the
importance of gender diversity, materials and language show a bias towards
stereotypes. This study confirms that this hypothesis is true. The results of both surveys,
one to students and one to teachers and also the interview and the textbook analysis
showed that, even if women representation is enhanced if compared to previous times,
there is a long way to go. Women are still underrepresented in the materials used in
class and even if both teachers and students seem to believe that equality between
binary genders at school has been achieved, that is not the case. Moreover, this is even
worse if non-normative identities and sexual orientation are taken into consideration,
as they are not even mentioned. Teachers admitted not paying attention to gender
queer people when designing activities. Some students seemed to have a lack of
empathy toward the LGTBQIA+ community. The textbook did not have a single
reference to them. These results together with teacher T’s views prove that non-binary
people are invisible at school and are not taken into account, the result being that the
student who defined himself as non-binary pointed out he had often felt excluded from
his peers. My hypothesis is, therefore, confirmed: there is an evident lack of gender
perspective, especially non-conforming people, in the English classroom.

As pointed out by both the students and the teachers, the language is inclusive
when there is a generalization of genders both in the materials used in the classroom
but also when referring to someone. This is also evident in the unit from the textbook
analysed where there is a clear tendency to avoid gendered words. Nevertheless, we
need to highlight that English is a non-binary language and it has many words that do
not refer to a specific gender.

I am aware that the results I have obtained have several limitations. The research
was carried out in a high school in Lleida and, as all case studies, results cannot be fully
generalized. Further research could be carried out by adding more participants, both
teachers and students and from different places and backgrounds. Another drawback in

41
this research is the lack of comparisons between variables because of the small number
of non-binary or non-normative people. In spite of these limitations, the results from
the research corroborates the findings in the bibliography.

In the light of these results, in my opinion, there is a clear need to enhance

gender awareness in the English classroom in the 21st society and more specifically to
raise awareness and foster understanding and tolerance to gender diversity. It is evident
that the LGTBQIA+ community, non-binary people and non-conforming people do not
play any role in the classroom and they deserve representation. Not only are they
unrepresented, but they might also feel excluded from the group.

In order to help highlight the importance of the issue of gender perspective, help
teachers spread awareness among students, and show that this is a motivating topic
that engages students in communicating in the target language, I designed a gamified
unit. Today, it is easier to break sexist stereotypes if you know the tools and resources
and work imaginatively and creatively. From this research, further analyses can be
carried out focusing on the testing of this unit and others that can be designed to engage
students.

The aim of the gamified unit was to show how students can improve their English
while enriching their knowledge on this crucial societal issue. By doing so, we will be
able to integrate the students who belong to the LGTBQIA+ community as they will feel
represented. We will also show learners that by empowering these marginalized
identities, binary people are not to be disregarded. The results of my research have
confirmed that the classroom needs to mirror the real world, and the real world is
formed by all sorts of sexual and gender identities.

42
References
Andreu, E. C. (2011). D'alumna a mestra: l'accés de les dones al magisteri oficial.
Educació i Història: Revista d'història de l'educació, (17), 47-75.
Andreu, E.C. (2006). Ser mestra a la Catalunya del segle XIX. Pagès Editors.
Arterian, R. H. (2009). The hidden curriculum. University of Toledo Law Review, (40),
280-296.
Bian, L., Leslie, S. J., & Cimpian, A. (2018). Evidence of bias against girls and women in
contexts that emphasize intellectual ability. American Psychologist, 73(9), 1139-
1153.
Burgess, D. (2019). Teach Like a Pirate. Dave Burgess Consulting.
Catalunya, A. Q. U. (2019). Marc general per a la incorporació de la perspectiva de gènere
a la docència universitària. https://www.aqu.cat/universitats/Guies-
metodologuiques/marc-general-per-a-la-incorporacio-de-la-perspectiva-de-
genere-en-la-docencia-universitaria.
Departament d’Educació. (2020). Programa de coeducació, perspectiva de gènere i
educación efectivo sexual al currículum.
https://blocs.xtec.cat/coeducacioiigualtat/
Departament d’Educació. Xarxa Telemàtica Educativa de Catalunya (2021). Coeducació
i igualtat de gènere. http://xtec.gencat.cat/ca/curriculum/coeducacio/
Djavadghazaryans, A. (2020). “Please Don’t Gender Me!” Strategies for Inclusive
Language Instruction in a Gender-Diverse Campus Community. In Criser, R &
Malakaj, E (Ed.) Diversity and Decolonization in German Studies, 269-287.
England, D. E., Descartes, L., & Collier-Meek, M. A. (2011). Gender role portrayal and the
Disney princesses. Sex roles, 64(7), 555-567.
Giuliano, P. (2017). Gender: An historical perspective. National Bureau of Economic
Research. DOI 10.3386/w23635
González-de-Garay, B., Marcos-Ramos, M. & Portillo-Delgado, C. (2020). Gender
representation in Spanish prime-time TV series, Feminist Media Studies, 20:3,
414-433, DOI: 10.1080/14680777.2019.1593875.
Grant, E. & Carter, S. (2018). Advantage 2. Oxford: Burlington Books.
Heaton T., Lawson T. (1996). Explaining gender differences in educational achievement.
in Education and Training. London: Palgrave.
IPSOS (2020). Glossary of gender terms. Retrieved from
https://future.ipsos.com/gender/glossary-of-gender-terms
Mayo, C. (2014). LGBTQ youth and education: Policies and practices. London: Teachers
College Press.
McLeod, S. (2019). Likert Scale Definition, Examples and Analysis Retrieved from
https://www.simplypsychology.org/likert-scale.html

43
Mustapha, A. S., & Mills, S. (Eds.). (2015). Gender representation in learning materials:
International perspectives. London: Routledge.
Nació digital. (2021). Les dones a Catalunya cobren un 23% menys que els homes.
(Retrieved from https://www.naciodigital.cat/bergueda/noticia/19180/dones-
catalunya-cobren-23-menys-homes)
Negre C. & Carrión, S. (2020). Desafio en el aula. Barcelona: Paidós Educación.
Norton, B., & Pavlenko, A. (2004). Addressing gender in the ESL/EFL classroom. TESOL
Quarterly, 38(3), 504-514.
Oliver, D. (2021). Libros de texto con pocos referentes femeninos. El País. Retrieved from
https://elpais.com/elpais/2021/03/02/actualidad/1614681609_438146.html?ss
m=TW_CC
The PBHS Closet. (2020) A list of gender and sexualities and their definition Retrieved
from http://thepbhscloset.weebly.com/a-list-of-genders--sexualities-and-their-
definitions.html

44
Glossary of gender-related terms
In order to appreciate the importance of teaching gender, an understanding of the basic
concepts that are necessary to comprehend must be spread.

AGENDER PEOPLE: People who do not identify with any gender. When a person
identifies with a gender partialy, that is called Demigender (demigirl, demiboy,
demiagender, etc.).

ASEXUALITY: Not experiencing sexual attraction.

BISEXUALITY: Attraction to both binary genders.

CISGENDER: People whose gender identity matches the one assigned to them at birth.
For cisgender people, gender expression, identity and sex match, however
cisgender people can also identify as gender non-conforming.

GENDER FLUIDITY: The notion that gender identity changes over time. People whose
gender fluctuates are gender fluid.

GENDER NEUTRAL: Idntities not easily categorized as masculine or feminine. Often a

blend of the two.

GENDER PERFORMATIVITY: Gender is a performance, and we can call this term “gender
performativity”. Gender is not something one is, it is something one does, an act,
or more precisely, a sequence of act. (Butler, J. 2003)

GENDER QUEER: Umbrella term used to describe non-normative genders like agender,
gender fluid, non-binary, etc. People who do not follow binary norms when it
comes to gender based social expressions or expectations (women: feminine /
men: masculine), are also called gender non-conforming.

GENDER ROLES: Behaviors, activities, expressions and performance expected of a

designated gender by society.

GENDER: Gender refers to a person’s internal sense of gender (Being a man, woman,
genderqueer). The nonphysiological aspects of being female or male, that is to
say, the cultural expectations and roles for femininity and masculinity. (Lips, H.

45
 M. 2020). Gender is a social construct. It refers to the socially constructed roles,
behaviours, activities, and attributes that a given society considers appropiate
for men and women. Gender is much more complex than a distinction between
femininity and masculinity. Many individuals do not identify with or fit neatly
into the traditional categories of masculine or femenine, but feel they are
somewhere on a spectrum between the two categories. (Lips, H. M. 2020) For
this reason, we could say that gender is fluid and a non-binary system.

HETEROSEXUALITY: Attraction to people of the opposite gender.

HOMOSEXUALITY: Attraction to people of the same gender. Sometimes refered to as

“Gay”. Women who are attracted to other women are sometimes refered to as
“Lesbian”.

INTERSECTIONALITY: The realtionship between different social structuring factors such

as race, class, nationality, gender or sexuality.

INTERSEX: Intersex is a term used to describe people born with reproductive or sexual
anatomy that is not strictly male or female. Characteristics could range from
ambiguous external genitalia, hormones, sex chromosomes, internal
reproducyive system, etc.

NON GENDER PEOPLE: People who refuse to be defined in a gendered way.

NON-BINARY: Gender outside the male / female binary. People who find themselves
inside the spectrum of gender and do not fall into any traditional binary
categories.

PANSEXUALITY: Attraction to all genders without discriminating genderqueer people.

SEX: When people are labeled as “male”, “female”, or “intersexual” we are refering to
their sex, whether they were born with male or female genitalia or biological
characteristics. Assigning people to a sex category is normally based on their
external genitalia at birth. Sex can be changed over time by a means of surgical
interventions and hormones.

46
SEXUAL ORIENTATION: Refers to the sex you are attracted to sexually. The categories
normally used (lesbian and gay, heterosexual and bisexual) are based on the
gender binary system.

TRANSGENDER / TRANS: Transgender people defie gender binaries. Transgender people

are those who were born with one assigned gender but feel they belong to
another one. Transgender women are women who were assigned male at birth
and identify as female, and Transgender men are men who were assigned female
at birth but identify as male. Transgender women are women and transgender
men are men regadless of having transitioned (physically or behaviorally) or not.
Non-binary people can also identify as transgender if they were assigned a
particular gender at birth that they do not relate to.

TRANSSEXUAL: A term used, often by medical providers, to describe individuals who

seek to change or who have changed their primary and/or secondary sex
characteristics through femininizing or masculinizing medical interventions
(hormones and/or surgery), typically accompanied by a permanent change in
gender role (Coleman et al., 2011).

47
Annex
Annex 1 Questionnaire for teachers
This Annex shows the answers to the Teachers’ survey, which can be consulted at
https://forms.gle/383Zc7aiLs1oL5Tj6.

PERSONAL QUESTIONS:

48
49
QUESTIONNAIRE:

No yes

No
yes

From Kindergarden onwards. From secondary onwards.

1. An isolated issue that can be dealt with only at certain school moments.

50
 5. Related to the basic social organization and can be related to the
curriculum.

No Yes

No. (Pare / Mare de l'Alumne/a) Yes. (Benvolguda familia)

No yes

51
Not at all A lot

Not at all A lot

52
Not at all A lot

Not at all A lot

Not at all A lot

53
Not at all A lot

Not at all A lot

Not at all A lot

54
Not at all A lot

Not at all A lot

Not at all A lot

55
Not at all A lot

Not at all A lot

Not at all A lot

56
Not at all A lot

57
58
Annex 2 Questionnaire for students
This Annex 2 shows the answers to the students’ survey, which can be consulted at
https://forms.gle/f9YCRv4unJSEuPF69

PREGUNTES PERSONALS:

Edat:

52 respuestas

59
QUESTIONARI:

T'han ensenyat mai educació sexual o/i de gènere sense haver-ne buscat tu per
internet, havent seguit alguna publicació, etc.? En llocs com l'escola, tallers, etc.

60
Ets conscient de la diferencia entre sexe i gènere?

El gènere

Crec que si es parla de identitats de gènere o sexuals, les persones poden convertir-se
en gay, lesbianes, trans, etc.

61
Mai Si, és possible.

Crec que les persones no-normatives (gay, lesbiana, trans, bisexuals, intersex, etc.)
poden estar malaltes mentalment o que tinguin una malatia per ser així.

Mai Si, és possible.

És important saber de gènere.

Gens Molt

M'interessa el tema de les identitats de gènere i sexuals.

62
Gens Molt

Alguna vegada m'he sentit excluide per part del professorat per la meva identitat
sexual o de gènere.

Mai SOvint

Alguna vegada m'he sentit excluide per part dels meus companys i companyes per la
meva identitat sexual o de gènere.

Mai SOvint

63
La diversitat de l'estudiantat i les families és visible i acceptada per tothom a la meva
escola.

Gens Molt

Em sento indentificade i comode amb les situacions, exemples i temes tractats a

l'assignatura d’anglès.

Gens Molt

Em sento indentificade i comode amb les situacions, exemples i temes tractats a la

resta d'assignatures.

64
Gens Molt

En cas que en alguna assignatura no et sentis comode o identificade, siusplau

especifica quines i/o quins temes

El professorat s'adreça a mi amb els meus pronoms escollits?

Mai Sovint

65
L'alumnat s'adreça a mi amb els meus pronoms escollits?

Mai Sovint

Les escoles haurien d'adaptar les seves infrastructures i/o arees comunes per crear un
espai segur i igualitari per les diferents diversitats de gènere. (Banys no-binàris, espais
segurs per les persones trans i intersexuals, etc.)

Gens Molt

Les infrastructures i/o arees comunes de la meva escola estan d'adaptades per crear
un espai segur i igualitari per les diferents diversitats de gènere.

66
Gens Molt

Es comú sentir paraules com gay, lesbiana o "marica" utilitzades com a insult?

Gens Molt

Tu o els teus companys i/o companyes feu alguna cosa al respecte?

Mai Sempre

67
A l'escola em van començar a ensenyar eduació de gènere o sexual durant la següent
edat:

He aprés els següents temes o termes en l'àmbit personal (familia, amics, etc.):

51 respuestas

He aprés els següents temes o termes a les xarxes socials (Internet, Instagram, tik tok,
etc):

68
He aprés els següents temes o termes a l'escola:

He aprés els següents temes o termes amb altres institucions, cursets, tallers, que no
tenen a veure amb l'escola:

69
Em sento comode tractant els següents temes a classe:

De quina manera és podria educar sobre gènere? Dins del temari de les varies
assignatures? Com un tema extra a l'hora de tutoria?

70
71
72
73
Annex 3 Interview to the English teacher
This Annex 3 describes the interview conducted to the English teacher on the 26th April
2021.

Interviewer (Henceforth I): La perspectiva de gènere es treballa a segon de batxillerat?

Teacher T (Henceforth T): Si, clar. És un dels temes centrals de la tutoria (encara que
s’ha tractat molt més a cursos inferiors). Cada any hi ha activitats previstes com
xerrades, talles i fins i tot una obra de teatre sobre el tema.

I: I a les classes normals? Vull dir a les assignatures, també es tracta o només a tutoria?

T: No no. Totes les assignatures han de tractar la perspectiva de gènere a la seva

programació. És un dels punts que cal incloure.

I: I a la classe d’anglès?

T: A la programació de 2 bat s’inclou la perspectiva de gènere de forma explícita ja que

és un del objectius del projecte educatiu del centre i perquè el departament de
llengües estrangeres considera que és un tema transversal fonamental que es
pot tractar molt bé des d l’assignatura d’anglès.

I: I com s’inclou? Vull dir, com es treballa?

T: Totes les unitats tracten sobre un tema i intentem que quan aquest es presenta,
sempre hi hagi una pregunta de reflexió. Per exemple, “els jutges són homes o
dones?” “Per què creieu que és això?” Apart, intentem sempre incloure figures
femenines en totes les unitats; vull dir, s’inclouen dones a totes les unitats ja
sigui amb imatges o textos que tractin sobre les dones. Pensa que les unitats
tenen un tema concret i llavors el que faig es buscar maneres de fer sobresortir
les dones perquè s’adonin que també hi som. I encara fem més. Algunes de les
unitats didàctiques són sobre aspectes relacionats amb el feminisme o les dones.
Es a dir, una altra manera de fer visible el paper de la dona és dissenyar activitats
o unitats que tractin explícitament el tema. Per exemple, una unitat didàctica
que es va dur a terme mitjançant la metodologia de l’ABP, Aprenentatge basat
en projectes, tractava sobre com eliminar els estereotips dels anuncis. En una
altra que vaig titular “The Lost Elixir”, l’alumnat treballa l’anglès amb activitats

74
 sobre dones científiques. Evidentment, treballem el dia de la dona i aquest any
faig preparar un joc d’escapament virtual que els va agradar molt.

I: Parles de les dones, però i els altres gèneres? Estan presents a la classe d’anglès?

T: Crec que les dones si estan visibilitzades, però no ho estan altres col·lectius com els
homosexuals o els trans. I això que en tenim a 2 bat.

I: Però llavors, la perspectiva de la que parlaves només és de les dones o inclou tots els
gèneres?

T: Hauria d’incloure’ls tots. El decret d’inclusió és el que diu però hi ha tanta feina a fer
encara amb es dones ... Si, crec que els descuidem perquè les dones som la
aproximadament meitat de la població però està clar que les els altres gèneres
s’han de visibilitzar igualment, no perquè siguin menys s’han d’oblidar. Es una
assignatura pendent.

I: I com s’hauria de fer?

T: Doncs de la mateixa manera que ho fem amb les dones. Perquè parlem de pare i mare
i no de dues mares? Clar que en anglès això sovint es invisibilitzat perquè diem
parents i així no saps quin gènere tenen però ... Per què no se m’ha acudit
dissenyar unitats que tracten el tema de la transsexualitat? Doncs la veritat és
que no sé encara que a la unitat dels estereotips va sortir el tema i en vam parlar.
Normalment, l’alumnat de 2 bat és més obert en aquests temes i molts ho diuen
obertament. Això ha canviat molt en els darrers anys. Però segur que hi ha molts
que no s’atreveixen i fent de l’homosexualitat o dels transsexuals un tema
normalitzat a l’aula, els donaria confiança en ells mateixos per a decidir el que
ells o elles considerin millor.

I: Creus que caldria incloure una assignatura d’educació sexual?

T: Jo no crec que es solucioni afegint una assignatura. Crec que ho hem de posar dins de
la nostra manera de fer i ser. L’escola i el professorat ha de ser model i actuar
amb naturalitat sigui la que sigui el nostre gènere i no tolerar la mínima falta de
respecte per l’altre. I evidentment incloure-ho a l’aula. Ho hauré de fer.

I: Moltes gràcies.

75
Annex 4 Textbook analysis
This Annex 4 shows the questionnaire used to assess the textbook.

Images
Number of women
Number of men
Number of non-binary people
What do women do in the images?
What do men do in the images?
What do non-binary people do in the images?
Famous People
Number of famous women and reason
Number of famous men and reason
Number of famous non-binary person and reason
Family
Types
Which are women’s roles in the family?
Which are men’s roles in the family?
Which are non-binary people’s roles in the family?
Jobs
Which are women’s jobs?
Which are men’s jobs?
Which are non-binary people’s jobs?
Hobbies
Which are women’s hobbies?
Which are men’s hobbies?
Which are non-binary people’s hobbies?
Stereotypes
Which are women’s stereotypes?
Which are men’s stereotypes?
Which are non-binary people’s stereotypes?
Language
Use of female pronouns (she-her)
Use of male pronouns (he-his)
Use of non-binary pronouns (they-their)
Who speaks first in conversations?

76