A Study of Children's Perceptions of Gender Identity and Stereotype in Public Pre-Primary Schools in Nairobi County, Kenya

Juliet Muasya; Isaac Muasya

doi:doi:10.11648/j.ijeedu.20200901.11

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A Study of Children's Perceptions of Gender Identity and Stereotype in Public Pre-Primary Schools in Nairobi County, Kenya

Juliet Muasya, Isaac Muasya

Published in International Journal of Elementary Education (Volume 9, Issue 1)

Received: 24 January 2020 Accepted: 13 February 2020 Published: 6 March 2020

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Abstract

Pre-primary education is a critical period when children develop, understand and express their gender identity and stereotype. Thus, pre-primary teachers should provide a rich learning environment with materials and equipments to guide and support children as they continue to explore their gender identity and stereotypes. The current study explored ways in which children perceive gender identity and stereotypes. In depth interviews were used with 20 children (10 boys and 10 girls), randomly sampled from 10 public pre-primary schools in Nairobi County. Data was analysed using themes in line with the study objectives. Findings reveal that the influence of teachers and mothers has an impact on how both boys and girls perceive their gender identity and stereotype. In particular, masculine and feminine characteristics, play materials and equipments, enhances children's gender identity and stereotypes. In conclusion, it is important to note that in order to bridge the gender gaps experienced by boys and girls, it is critical to deal with gender bias, stereotype and discrimination during the early years of a child's life. Relevant policies and programmes should be put in place especially in teacher education in order to empower teachers to help children deal with gender stereotypes.

Published in	International Journal of Elementary Education (Volume 9, Issue 1)
DOI	10.11648/j.ijeedu.20200901.11
Page(s)	1-7
Creative Commons	This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright	Copyright © The Author(s), 2020. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Gender Identity, Gender Stereotype, Feminine, Masculine, Perceptions, Pre-primary, Preschool Children

References

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APA Style

Juliet Muasya, Isaac Muasya. (2020). A Study of Children's Perceptions of Gender Identity and Stereotype in Public Pre-Primary Schools in Nairobi County, Kenya. International Journal of Elementary Education, 9(1), 1-7. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijeedu.20200901.11

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ACS Style

Juliet Muasya; Isaac Muasya. A Study of Children's Perceptions of Gender Identity and Stereotype in Public Pre-Primary Schools in Nairobi County, Kenya. Int. J. Elem. Educ. 2020, 9(1), 1-7. doi: 10.11648/j.ijeedu.20200901.11

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AMA Style

Juliet Muasya, Isaac Muasya. A Study of Children's Perceptions of Gender Identity and Stereotype in Public Pre-Primary Schools in Nairobi County, Kenya. Int J Elem Educ. 2020;9(1):1-7. doi: 10.11648/j.ijeedu.20200901.11

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@article{10.11648/j.ijeedu.20200901.11,
  author = {Juliet Muasya and Isaac Muasya},
  title = {A Study of Children's Perceptions of Gender Identity and Stereotype in Public Pre-Primary Schools in Nairobi County, Kenya},
  journal = {International Journal of Elementary Education},
  volume = {9},
  number = {1},
  pages = {1-7},
  doi = {10.11648/j.ijeedu.20200901.11},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijeedu.20200901.11},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ijeedu.20200901.11},
  abstract = {Pre-primary education is a critical period when children develop, understand and express their gender identity and stereotype. Thus, pre-primary teachers should provide a rich learning environment with materials and equipments to guide and support children as they continue to explore their gender identity and stereotypes. The current study explored ways in which children perceive gender identity and stereotypes. In depth interviews were used with 20 children (10 boys and 10 girls), randomly sampled from 10 public pre-primary schools in Nairobi County. Data was analysed using themes in line with the study objectives. Findings reveal that the influence of teachers and mothers has an impact on how both boys and girls perceive their gender identity and stereotype. In particular, masculine and feminine characteristics, play materials and equipments, enhances children's gender identity and stereotypes. In conclusion, it is important to note that in order to bridge the gender gaps experienced by boys and girls, it is critical to deal with gender bias, stereotype and discrimination during the early years of a child's life. Relevant policies and programmes should be put in place especially in teacher education in order to empower teachers to help children deal with gender stereotypes.},
 year = {2020}
}

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TY  - JOUR
T1  - A Study of Children's Perceptions of Gender Identity and Stereotype in Public Pre-Primary Schools in Nairobi County, Kenya
AU  - Juliet Muasya
AU  - Isaac Muasya
Y1  - 2020/03/06
PY  - 2020
N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijeedu.20200901.11
DO  - 10.11648/j.ijeedu.20200901.11
T2  - International Journal of Elementary Education
JF  - International Journal of Elementary Education
JO  - International Journal of Elementary Education
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PB  - Science Publishing Group
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AB  - Pre-primary education is a critical period when children develop, understand and express their gender identity and stereotype. Thus, pre-primary teachers should provide a rich learning environment with materials and equipments to guide and support children as they continue to explore their gender identity and stereotypes. The current study explored ways in which children perceive gender identity and stereotypes. In depth interviews were used with 20 children (10 boys and 10 girls), randomly sampled from 10 public pre-primary schools in Nairobi County. Data was analysed using themes in line with the study objectives. Findings reveal that the influence of teachers and mothers has an impact on how both boys and girls perceive their gender identity and stereotype. In particular, masculine and feminine characteristics, play materials and equipments, enhances children's gender identity and stereotypes. In conclusion, it is important to note that in order to bridge the gender gaps experienced by boys and girls, it is critical to deal with gender bias, stereotype and discrimination during the early years of a child's life. Relevant policies and programmes should be put in place especially in teacher education in order to empower teachers to help children deal with gender stereotypes.
VL  - 9
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Author Information

Juliet Muasya

Department of Educational Communication and Technology, School of Education, College of Education and External Studies, University of Nairobi, Nairobi, Kenya
Isaac Muasya

Department of Education Foundations, School of Education, College of Education and External Studies, University of Nairobi, Nairobi, Kenya

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Plain Text BibTeX RIS

APA Style

Juliet Muasya, Isaac Muasya. (2020). A Study of Children's Perceptions of Gender Identity and Stereotype in Public Pre-Primary Schools in Nairobi County, Kenya. International Journal of Elementary Education, 9(1), 1-7. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijeedu.20200901.11

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ACS Style

Juliet Muasya; Isaac Muasya. A Study of Children's Perceptions of Gender Identity and Stereotype in Public Pre-Primary Schools in Nairobi County, Kenya. Int. J. Elem. Educ. 2020, 9(1), 1-7. doi: 10.11648/j.ijeedu.20200901.11

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AMA Style

Juliet Muasya, Isaac Muasya. A Study of Children's Perceptions of Gender Identity and Stereotype in Public Pre-Primary Schools in Nairobi County, Kenya. Int J Elem Educ. 2020;9(1):1-7. doi: 10.11648/j.ijeedu.20200901.11

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@article{10.11648/j.ijeedu.20200901.11,
  author = {Juliet Muasya and Isaac Muasya},
  title = {A Study of Children's Perceptions of Gender Identity and Stereotype in Public Pre-Primary Schools in Nairobi County, Kenya},
  journal = {International Journal of Elementary Education},
  volume = {9},
  number = {1},
  pages = {1-7},
  doi = {10.11648/j.ijeedu.20200901.11},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijeedu.20200901.11},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ijeedu.20200901.11},
  abstract = {Pre-primary education is a critical period when children develop, understand and express their gender identity and stereotype. Thus, pre-primary teachers should provide a rich learning environment with materials and equipments to guide and support children as they continue to explore their gender identity and stereotypes. The current study explored ways in which children perceive gender identity and stereotypes. In depth interviews were used with 20 children (10 boys and 10 girls), randomly sampled from 10 public pre-primary schools in Nairobi County. Data was analysed using themes in line with the study objectives. Findings reveal that the influence of teachers and mothers has an impact on how both boys and girls perceive their gender identity and stereotype. In particular, masculine and feminine characteristics, play materials and equipments, enhances children's gender identity and stereotypes. In conclusion, it is important to note that in order to bridge the gender gaps experienced by boys and girls, it is critical to deal with gender bias, stereotype and discrimination during the early years of a child's life. Relevant policies and programmes should be put in place especially in teacher education in order to empower teachers to help children deal with gender stereotypes.},
 year = {2020}
}

Copy | Download

TY  - JOUR
T1  - A Study of Children's Perceptions of Gender Identity and Stereotype in Public Pre-Primary Schools in Nairobi County, Kenya
AU  - Juliet Muasya
AU  - Isaac Muasya
Y1  - 2020/03/06
PY  - 2020
N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijeedu.20200901.11
DO  - 10.11648/j.ijeedu.20200901.11
T2  - International Journal of Elementary Education
JF  - International Journal of Elementary Education
JO  - International Journal of Elementary Education
SP  - 1
EP  - 7
PB  - Science Publishing Group
SN  - 2328-7640
UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijeedu.20200901.11
AB  - Pre-primary education is a critical period when children develop, understand and express their gender identity and stereotype. Thus, pre-primary teachers should provide a rich learning environment with materials and equipments to guide and support children as they continue to explore their gender identity and stereotypes. The current study explored ways in which children perceive gender identity and stereotypes. In depth interviews were used with 20 children (10 boys and 10 girls), randomly sampled from 10 public pre-primary schools in Nairobi County. Data was analysed using themes in line with the study objectives. Findings reveal that the influence of teachers and mothers has an impact on how both boys and girls perceive their gender identity and stereotype. In particular, masculine and feminine characteristics, play materials and equipments, enhances children's gender identity and stereotypes. In conclusion, it is important to note that in order to bridge the gender gaps experienced by boys and girls, it is critical to deal with gender bias, stereotype and discrimination during the early years of a child's life. Relevant policies and programmes should be put in place especially in teacher education in order to empower teachers to help children deal with gender stereotypes.
VL  - 9
IS  - 1
ER  -

Copy | Download