Stereotyping women and ethnicity in education

Stereotyping women and ethnicity in education

“It is the duty of every Muslim man and woman to seek knowledge” says former UNICEF Australia Young Ambassador, Marryum Kahloon.

We autonomously categorise individuals into groups in an attempt to develop some kind of social structure and make sense of the world around us. Although many of us do it subconsciously, this categorisation occurs on a daily basis and can lead us to develop certain stereotypes relative to these groups. So what constitutes a stereotype and why does it occur within education?

Marryum Kahloon’s article Stereotypes go against Koran on female education, provides us with a primary perspective on the stereotyping of Muslim women in education. We often deride a stereotype to present a negative connotation, and in many cases, this is true. The social categorisation of stereotyping leads us to believe that an individual has certain characteristics that we can apply to others, generally, on the basis of national, ethnic, or gender groups. In the case of Marryum Kahloon, both ethnicity and gender play a fundamental role in the stereotyping of Muslim women in education, an issue that continues to inform political debates within Australia. It is an issue that is constantly thrust upon us through the media, which can be seen as an intrinsic catalyst when we generate a stereotype.

The idea of a stereotype can promote an emphasis on the distinct differences between two groups. In this way, we can recognise that stereotypes can be directly linked to issues in culture as it can be seen as “the major source of people’s identity and major determinant of their actions and behaviour” (Phillips, 2006, p.5).

 

Madeleine Arnot and Jo-Anne Dillabough have written extensively on the issue of Feminist Politics and democratic values in education through re-assessing “the contributions of feminist thought to our understanding of democratic values in education” (Arnot & Dillabough, 1999, p.1). Feminist political theorists provide us with an understanding of gender dualisms and the binary male and female divide through an analysis of the associated male power over women. Yet Marryum Kahloon’s article suggests that within the educational sphere, Muslim women are represented as being oppressed when in fact, this is not the case. She says that “the media admonish the actions of people who try to prevent female education and present their beliefs as a cultural norm” therefore perpetuating a negative stereotype.

The Koran states: "It is the duty of every Muslim man and woman to seek knowledge” (Kahloon, 2013). So why then has this negative stereotype of Muslim women in education occurred within Australia? And who is to blame for its perpetuation?

While there are people who believe women should not be educated, this is not restricted to any one religion. It is a view among many people across a number of ethnic backgrounds yet Muslim women within Australia continue to be stereotyped as oppressed in both education and other social and cultural capacities. As Kahloon acknowledges, this can be seen to be rooted in the media’s focus on extremist groups within Islam and their “condemnation” rather than a controlled attempt to look at why these groups act the way they do and concentrating more effort to altering their understanding of gender dualisms and promoting equality.

References:

Arnot, M., & Dillabough, J. (1999). Feminist politics and democratic values in education. Curriculum Inquiry, 29(2), pp.159-189

Kahloon, M. (2013). Retrieved from: http://www.smh.com.au/comment/stereotypes-go-against-koran-on-female-education-20130714-2py0w.html

Phillips, A. (2006). What is culture? In Arneil, Barbara and Deveaux, Monique and Dhamoon, Rita and Eisenberg, Avigail, (eds.) Sexual justice/cultural justice. London, UK: Routledge, 2006, pp.15-29

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