Needs Assessment for Gender Equality Curriculum among High School Students: An Example of an Anatolian High School

Abstract

When the needs of Turkish society are examined in gender equality which is an important determinant of human rights, it has been observed that women were not able to use the rights to life, health, education, work, equal pay for equal work, to right to vote and be voted for and participate freely in cultural life as required. Cases of violations of rights have occurred in these areas, as well. Determining needs of high school students for gender equality education, which coincides with the assimilation of gender roles, embrace of gender based patterns and completion of gender identity formation, will be one of the first steps in the upbringing of gender sensitive individuals in the future. The purpose of this research is to determine the educational needs of high school students for the Gender Equality Curriculum. The research data realized with the help of case study of the qualitative research methodology were obtained through semi-structured focus group interviews, participant observation and document review. The study group consisted of students who attended an Anatolian High School in Ankara during the academic year of 2012-2013. The data of the study was analyzed by using the content analysis technique on NVivo 8 computer software. The result of the research has discovered the followings: the students have adopted traditional gender roles and gender stereotypes; acts of violence are mostly done by male students towards female students or female teachers; some students do not consider women’s secondary status as discrimination; gender interactions have been restricted; gender discriminations are done by teachers; violence against women has occured and remained unresponsive. When the findings are evaluated in a holistic sense, it has been determined that high school students have educational needs on topics like "perception of gender", "gender roles and stereotypes", "homosexuality", "participation of women in decision making", "violence against women" and "participation of women in business and income".