Gender Representation in English Language Textbooks Taught in Egyptian Schools

7/23/2019 Gender Representation in English Language Textbooks Taught in Egyptian Schools

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/gender-representation-in-english-language-textbooks-taught-in-egyptian-schools 1/23

1

Gender Representation in English Language Textbooks Taught in

Egyptian Schools

Rana K. El Kholy

Ain Shams University, Cairo

Abstract

This paper investigates gender representation in English language textbooks published

by the Egyptian Ministry of Education and used in primary and preparatory stages in

both public and private schools in Egypt. To reveal whether there is gender imbalance

in these textbooks, two methods of data analysis were employed: content analysis and

critical discourse analysis as proposed by feminist stylistics. The study was conducted

in two phases: the first phase examined seven criteria, while the second one looked at

five categories. The findings showed gender imbalance as males were overrepresented

in most of the categories while females were stereotypically depicted and

marginalized. Throughout the textbooks, men were shown as more powerful and more

dominant than women who were looked down upon and were illustrated as inferior to

men. This underrepresentation of women is considered a reflection of the inequality

between men and women that continues to thrive in the Egyptian society.

Keywords: Gender Representation, Education, Textbooks, Content Analysis, Critical

Discourse Analysis.

Introduction

Education plays a very important role in shaping the minds of children and

young adults. Educational materials, such as textbooks, affect the “development of

attitudes students carry into adult life” and therefore, “the values and societal roles

suggested in instructional materials [should] be positive ones, and [should] be as free

as possible from bias, stereotypes, and career-role restriction” (Holt, Rinehart &



2

Winston 1975, qtd. in Britton & Lumpkin, 1977, p. 41). Educational materials not

only give information, but also unconsciously foster positive or negative attitudes in

learners about many aspects in life. These aspects include race, religion, sex,

occupations, life expectations and life chances (Ginn & Company 1973, qtd. in

Britton & Lumpkin, 1977). Certain messages embedded in some texts may influence

the reader and thus, it is “important to analy[z]e texts carefully in terms of the

systematic language choices which have been made... to become aware of the way

that language choices may serve the interests of some people to the detriment of

others” (Mills, 1995, pp.1-2).

Theoretical Background

Pingel (2010) displayed various methods that can be used for analyzing

educational subject-oriented text. One of these methods is the didactic analysis which

deals with “the methodological approach to the topic” and exploring “the pedagogy

behind the text” (p.31). In addition, space analysis measures the text to determine

how much space is allotted to a country or topic. Another method is the hermeneutic

analysis which reveals underlying assumptions that cannot be measured. Moreover,

other methods were devised to examine the text itself. For instance, content analysis

investigates the message conveyed by the text and whether it sufficiently covers the

topic in question. Furthermore, discourse analysis investigates “what the author

regards as important, what he or she feels needs to be explained and what he or she

takes for granted” ( p.71). It attempts to find out which topics are supported by visuals,

which are summarized, and which are excluded or included in the text.

As it is the purpose of this study to examine the language used in educational

materials, the last two approaches, which emphasize different aspects of language use,

were found to be most appropriate for the aim of this study.



3

1. Content Analysis

Content analysis has been described as “the systematic study of texts and other

cultural pr oducts or nonliving data forms” (Hesse-Biber & Leavy, 2007, p.227). By

using content analysis, researchers “study a set of objects … systematically by

counting them or interpreting the themes contained in them” (Reinharz, 1992, p.146).

This methodology was developed in 1931 by Alfred R Lindesmith and later

gained popularity in the 1960s by Glaser who referred to it as The Constant

Comparative Method of Qualitative Analysis in an article of the same title (1965).

Glaser and Strauss (1967) referred to it as Grounded Theory in their adaptation of it.

For them, discovery and theory development were more essential than logical

deductive reasoning which depends on previous theoretical frameworks. These two

features of the method characterized it with certain distinctive strategies. First, data

collection and analysis proceed simultaneously. Therefore, grounded theorists need to

work with solid, rich data because they intend to construct theory from the data itself.

Second, it is the data rather than the preconceived logically deduced theoretical

frameworks that shapes both processes and products of research. Thus, there is no

reliance on the literature to sha pe the grounded theorists’ ideas since they believe that

they should develop their own analyses independently. (Charmaz, 1994)

According to Hesse-Biber and Leavy (2007), the appeal of content analysis for

feminist researchers is multifaceted. It may be used by feminist researchers to

examine the extent to which women’s issues or feminist perspectives are explored in a

particular medium. Feminist researchers employ content analysis to “identify patterns

in authorship, subject matter, methods and interpretation. Findings for such studies are

then used to generate or test hypotheses relevant to feminist theory and concerns, or to

press for social change” (Reinharz, 1992, P.155).



4

2. Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA)

The beginnings of Critical discourse analysis (CDA) date back to the late 1980s

when it emerged as a programmatic development in European discourse studies led by

Norman Fairclough, Ruth Wodak, Teun van Dijk, and others. Since then, it has

become one of the most influential and visible branches of discourse analysis (Jan

Blommaert and Chris Bulcaen, 2000).

Because the aim of CDA is to explore the connection between language choices

within a text and the social and cultural context in which this text functions, the focus

according to Dijk is on investigating “the way social power abuse, dominance, and

inequality are enacted, reproduced, and resisted by text and talk in social and political

context” (Schiffrin, Tannen & Hamilton , 2001, p. 352). It attempts to stipulate which

aspects of the social context might influence which aspects of the language.

CDA is a type of critical linguistic work that relies on Systemic Functional

Grammar of Halliday (Halliday, 1994) for its analytical framework. Halliday’s

Systemic Function Grammar provides a systematic way of describing and analyzing

the links between grammatical choices and socio-cultural context.

Since CDA focuses on how language as a cultural tool mediates relationships of

power and privilege in social interactions, education researchers have turned to it as a

way to describe, interpret, and explain important educational problems, such as

gender inequality.

Review of Related Research

1. Earlier Studies Conducted on English Language Textbooks

Different studies have been conducted around the world to examine gender

representation in school textbooks. Many of these studies employed a content analysis



5

method examining gender imbalance and stereotyping in texts as well as illustrations.

One of the earlier studies on English language textbooks was conducted by Sano, Iida

and Hardy (2002) who analyzed gender representation in the five series of English

textbooks most commonly used in Japanese junior high schools. They carried out a

quantitative analysis to try to detect any gender imbalance. Their research suggested

that these textbooks contained gender-biased implicit messages despite the fact that

no explicit linguistic features were articulated. No gender-biased language, such as

chairman, was detected in the textbooks. Nevertheless, gender bias could be noted in

gender-based choice and use of verbs, which revealed that male characters played

major roles while female characters filled subordinate ones.

Similarly, Özdoğru, Aksoy, Erdoğan and Gök (2006) examined the presentation

of gender roles in two Turkish elementary school textbooks via a content analysis

method. The study showed that there were major gender differences in terms of social

values, roles, and relations both in school atmosphere and family environment. For

example, most of the female characters were seen in jobs related to housework and

child-raising, whereas men characters had a wider range and higher level job

opportunities than females.

In another study of content analysis of Turkish schoolbooks conducted by

Sivasligil (2006), gender ideology was investigated as depicted through female and

male representations in 6th, 7th, and 8th grade English course books. In addition to

conducting a content analysis, the researcher applied discourse analysis to the data

and the results were analyzed both qualitatively and quantitatively. The findings of

this study were conflicting. Whereas almost all the categories used in the content

analysis revealed gender imbalance in the portrayal of gender roles, the results

obtained from the discourse analysis of the verbal behaviors of the characters in the



6

course books showed a balanced gender representation. In other words, female

characters were underrepresented in contrast to male characters in terms of frequency

of appearance, amount of talk, representation of family and social roles, distribution

of household responsibilities, and leisure activities. On the other hand, both men and

women equally performed depowering and empowering strategies in conversations

whether uni-gender or cross-gender.

In a similar and more recent study, Ram (2008) examined gender biases in

primary school textbooks used in public sector schools in Pakistan. Ram conducted a

content analysis of textbook illustrations and the results indicated that they reflected

gender biases as found in Pakistan. Female representation (30.1%) was considerably

lower as compared to male images (69.9%) and women were presented in stereotyped

roles. For example, the occupational role of women was restricted to traditional

‘women professions’, such as nurse, and household work was typically shown to be a

female-only domain.

Likewise, the aim of the study conducted by Johansson and Malmsjö (2009),

which made use of English language textbooks, was to investigate if there was any

over-representation of female and male characters. They conducted a quantitative

study of dialogues and speaking exercises in four EFL textbook series used in

secondary schools in Sweden. The findings of their investigation showed that two of

the textbook series over-represented male characters, while the other two over-

represented female characters. The earlier were published before the latter, and the

findings were interpreted by the researchers as a kind of overcompensation.



7

2. Earlier Studies Conducted on Other Types of Textbooks

In addition to the aforementioned studies that focused mainly on English

language textbooks, gender representation has also been content analyzed in History

school textbooks and roughly the same results were reached. For instance, Cooke-

Sawyer (1998) examined gender bias and sex role stereotyping in three grade seven

History textbooks. The researcher analyzed all aspects of content including

illustrations, language, type of history and suggested activities and exercises. The

study’s findings showed that gender bias and sex role stereotyping were still evident

in the textbooks used at that time in classrooms. The illustrations of men were higher

in number and fewer references were made to females than to males. In general, sex

role stereotypes were still persistent.

Chick (2006) evaluated elementary, middle school, and high school K-12

American History textbooks for gender balance. These textbooks were assessed for

the number of male and female historical figures in text content and illustrations using

content analysis procedures. Notably the percentage of males was found to be more

than females at all levels in both content and illustrations.

3. Studies Conducted on Language Textbooks in the Arab World

To the researcher’s knowledge, however, very few studies have attempted an

investigation of gender representation in school textbooks in the Arab world. One of

these studies was conducted by Abu Nasr, Lorfing, and Mikati (1983) who issued a

report divided into two parts. The first part was “A Study of Sex Role Stereotype in

Arabic Readers” examining seventy-nine Arabic readers and revealing that the

traditional outlook towards women in the Arab world was derived from marriage and

motherhood. In the second part entitled “A Guide for the Identification and



8

Elimination of Sexism in Arabic Textbooks”, detailed procedures for recording data

both qualitatively and quantitatively were given. In addition, a collection of samples

of original and revised text and illustrations were provided in the guide. This guide’s

main concern was to spread awareness regarding the issue of sexism in textbooks and

to provide guidelines for its identification and elimination.

In a more recent study, Osman (2006) investigated some of the specific ways in

which sexist attitudes and values are conveyed through the use of language in English

as a Foreign Language (EFL) textbooks in Egypt. The study was limited to only two

textbooks; one in the primary stage and another in the secondary stage. With reference

to both sexes, the two books were content-analyzed in terms of four criteria, namely,

names, firstness, occupational roles, and illustrations. The findings showed that in

every category of this study, except in illustrations in the primary stage book, sexism

continued to flourish.

Hamdan’s (2010) study examined gender bias in English language school

textbooks used in public schools in Jordan. A content analysis of the discourse of the

textbooks was carried out; exploring the author’s treatment of jobs attributed to men

and women. While males were demonstrated as practicing a variety of jobs, females

were limited to traditional jobs, such as teachers and nurses. Therefore, the results of

this study illustrated a tendency toward gender asymmetry in Jordanian EFL texts.

4. The Need for the Present Study

In view of the above, it is clear that gender representation has attracted

increasing attention over the last decade. The studies conducted in this area attempted

to investigate and analyze gender imbalance and stereotyping in school textbooks of

different subjects, especially language. The aim was to unveil any gender inequality in



9

order to spread awareness of this issue and to try to identify and purge any gender

disproportion in these textbooks. Nevertheless, to the researcher’s knowledge, in the

Egyptian context only one study (see Literature Review) has examined gender

representation in the English language textbooks taught in public and private schools.

This is a gap in literature that the present study attempted to fill up. Moreover, the fact

that the study examines textbooks taught in schools to young learners which are likely

to deeply influence them and cultivate in them the assumptions and beliefs of the

society in which they are taught brings to the front the importance of this study.

Furthermore, the importance of this study stems from the fact that it is the first to be

conducted on a large scale in the Egyptian context. Unlike Osman (2006) whose study

was limited to only two textbooks, one in the primary stage and another in the

secondary stage, the present study covered a wider range of textbooks; three

textbooks in the primary stage and the three preparatory stage textbooks. In addition

to that, Osman only employed content analysis to study four categories in the

textbooks, while in this study, both a content analysis and a critical linguistic analysis

methods are used to examine fourteen categories. Besides, this study is crucial for its

implications on teaching. It is important for teachers and educators to be aware of any

gender imbalance in the textbooks they are teaching, because if any imbalance is

detected, these textbooks should be reviewed and revised.

Rationale for the Study

The main aim of the present study is to investigate gender representation in

English language textbooks used in the primary and preparatory stages, and published

by the Egyptian Ministry of Education. Moreover, this study aspires to reveal whether



10

there is any gender imbalance in these textbooks as a reflection of the gender

inequality apparent in the Egyptian society.

Method

Sample

Six English language textbooks which are obligatory in all schools in Egypt

were analyzed in this study. These textbooks were taught in the academic year of

2010/2011. Three of them were taught in the fourth, fifth, and sixth years in Primary

schools, while the other three were taught in the Preparatory stage. They were

downloaded from the Ministry of Education’s online website: http://www.emoe.org/.

The researcher employed the content and critical discourse analysis methods to

investigate gender representation in the texts and illustrations and to understand the

links between the language choices in the texts and the socio-cultural context.

Research Questions

The main research question that this study attempted to answer was: Are both

genders represented equally in English language textbooks taught in Egyptian

schools?

To answer this question, the study was carried out in two phases: the first using

a content analysis method and the second employing a critical linguistic analysis

method proposed by feminist stylistics.

First, the content analysis helped in finding answers to the following sub-questions:

1.

What is the ratio of female compared to male characters and the range of jobs and

of domestic roles that are related to each gender in the selected textbooks?

http://www.emoe.org/





11

2. What are the adjectives used to describe men and women characters and what is

the frequency of women appearing first when men and women appear together in

binary male and female terms?

3. What is the visual representation of women compared to that of men? i.e., what is

the ratio of illustrations that depict women characters as opposed to that of men

and what is the ratio of illustrations that depict mixed gender?

Second, the critical linguistic analysis approach allowed the researcher to answer the

following research sub-questions:

1.

What is the frequency of assigning the Actor role to women as opposed to men in

material processes and how often does the Actor materialize with a Goal?

2. What is the frequency of assigning the Senser role in mental processes, the

Possessor role in relational processes, and the Sayer, Receiver, and Target roles

in verbal processes to women as opposed to men?

Data Analysis

Two types of analysis were carried out. First, a systematic quantitative content

analysis was performed with reference to seven criteria, namely, names, mentions,

social roles, domestic roles, adjectives, binary terms, and illustrations. Secondly, a

critical discourse analysis was performed making use of Halliday’s Systemic

Functional Grammar. This type of analysis was conducted on five stages: the

frequency of assigning the Actor role to males and females, whether these actors

materialised with a goal, and the frequencies of assigning the Senser role, the

Possessor roles, and the Sayer, Receiver and Target roles to females and males.

Each criterion was thoroughly reviewed throughout each of the textbooks. The

number of occurrences of representation in each criterion whether denoting to females



12

or males in all textbooks was counted, tallied, and summed. The names, for example,

referring to females or males were counted.

Results

The findings of the study were presented in two tables. Table 1 shows the

relationship between gender and the first seven criteria examined in the first phase of

the study in both the primary and preparatory stages:

Table 1

Results of Content Analysis of Textbooks of Both Stages

Criteria

Primary Stage Preparatory Stage

Male Female Both Male Female Both

Names130/235

55%

105/235

45% N/A

279/503

55%

224/503

45% N/A

Mentions398/623

64%

225/623

36% N/A

1611/2560

63%

949/2560

37% N/A

Social Roles16/23

70%

4/23

17%

3/23

13%

41/54

76%

9/54

17%

4/54

7%Domestic

Roles

0/7

0%

0/7

0%

7/7

100%

1/8

13%

1/8

13%

6/8

74%

Adjectives1/2

50%

1/2

50%

0/2

0%

47/86

55%

37/86

43%

2/86

2%

Binary

Terms

0

0%

0

0% N/A

5/7

71%

2/7

29% N/A

Illustrations323/739

44%

138/739

19%

278/739

37%

574/1368

42%

474/1368

35%

320/1368

23%

Indications of the percentages of females to males were as follows:

Considering names, it is noteworthy that males slightly exceeded females in

both the primary and preparatory stages. As for mentions, male mentions were almost

twice as much as female mentions in both stages.



13

The social roles associated with females were extremely limited compared to

those of males in both stages. Furthermore, the range of social roles shared by both

genders was very limited, especially in the preparatory stage.

Males and females were equally assigned the same domestic roles in the

primary stage and the most frequently mentioned domestic role was that of parental

relations: ‘father/dad’ and ‘mother/mum’. As for the preparatory stage, females and

males were also equally represented in this category except for two roles: ‘cousin’ for

females and ‘great grandfather’ for males.

As for the use of adjectives, only two adjectives were mentioned in the primary

stage; one was associated with a male and another with a female. In the preparatory

stage, males slightly exceeded females in regards to the association with adjectives,

while only two adjectives were common in both genders.

There were no binary male and female terms in the primary stage. However, the

frequency of males appearing first in binary terms in the preparatory stage surpassed

the frequency of females coming before males in these terms to a great extent.

As shown in Table 1, the percentages of illustrations representing males in the

primary and preparatory stages were almost the same. The number of female

illustrations in the primary stage was much lesser than in the preparatory stage. As for

the illustrations depicting both genders, the percentage of such illustrations was higher

in the primary stage than in the preparatory one.

Table 2 shows the relationship between gender and the second five criteria

examined in the second phase of the study in both the primary and preparatory stages:



14

Table 2

Results of Critical Discourse Analysis of Textbooks of Both Stages

Criteria

Primary Stage Preparatory Stage

Male Female Both Male Female Both

Actor Role43/88

49%

35/88

40%

10/88

11%

206/339

61%

103/339

30%

30/339

9%

Materialized

with a Goal

81/124

65%

39/124

32%

4/124

3%

373/615

61%

215/615

35%

27/615

4%

Senser Role13/18

72%

5/18

28%

0/18

0%

45/69

65%

22/69

32%

2/69

3%

Possessor

Role

7/14

50%

7/14

50%

0/14

0%

23/51

45%

19/51

37%

9/51

18%

Sayer Role 1/250%

1/250%

0/20%

192/29366%

97/29333%

4/2931%

Receiver

Role

0

0%

0

0%

0

0%

73/112

65%

35/112

31%

4/112

4%

Target Role0

0%

0

0%

0

0%

3/7

43%

4/7

57%

0/7

0%

Indications of the percentages of females to males were as follows:

In regards to the Actor role, it is evident that gender imbalance becomes more

acute as we move from primary to preparatory textbooks in favor of males. On the

other hand, the percentage of females assigned the same role decreases in the

preparatory stage in contrast to the primary one. As for the percentage of both

genders sharing the same actor role, it did not change much in both stages.

Table 2 shows how males, when assigned the Actor role, were represented as

materializing with a goal in almost double the instances of females. Both genders

materializing with a goal shared almost the same percentage in both stages.

The percentages of males being assigned the Senser role were exceedingly

higher than the percentages of females in the primary and preparatory stages. There

were no instances of both genders sharing the Senser role in the primary stage unlike

the preparatory stage in which a very small percentage was assigned to both genders.



15

Half of the Possessor roles were assigned to males and the other half were

assigned to females and none were shared between both genders in the primary stage.

However, in the preparatory stage, males were assigned the Possessor role more than

females and a smaller percentage was assigned to both genders.

Half of the Sayer roles were assigned to males while the other half were

assigned to females and none were shared between both genders in the primary stage.

The percentage of males being assigned the Sayer role was double that of females

with only a very small the percentage of instances where assigned to females and

males together in the preparatory stage.

No occurrences of the Receiver role were found in the primary stage. However,

in the preparatory stage, the instances of assigning the Receiver role to males were

more than double the instance of assigning the same role to females with only a small

percentage of instances being shared by both genders.

As for the Target role, no occurrences were found in the primary stage. In the

preparatory stage, the higher frequency of occurrence was of the Target roles when

assigned to females with no instances of both genders sharing the Target role.

Discussion and Conclusion

In light of the foregoing data presentation, the analysis provided clear credence

to the view that there was imbalance in the representation of gender in these

textbooks. The study reached the conclusion that in most of the categories of this

study, there was evidence of inequality between men and women in English language

materials published by the Egyptian Ministry of Education and taught in both private

and public schools in Egypt.



16

In the first phase of analysis, it is evident that males were overrepresented in

most of the criteria in both primary and preparatory stages. First, male names, such as

“Ahmed”, exceeded female ones, such as “Soha” in number in both stages. The same

conclusion was reached in Osman’s (2006) study of Egyptian textbook s in which

male names exceeded those of females. This might be a reflection of the Egyptian

belief in lower-classes that female names should not be mentioned in public, because

in some instances in the textbooks there were female characters that were not given

any names. For example, in a story in Units 7 and 8 in Preparatory 3 textbook, the

boy’s name was mentioned, “Bassam”, whereas his grandmother ’s name was never

mentioned and she was referred to as “Bassam’s grandmother”.

Second, the frequency of male mentions was almost double that of females’ in

both stages. This can be considered an indication of how men were represented as the

more active participant in society. Surpassing women in mentions depicted men as

more powerful and more involved in all aspects of life while women were mentioned

in fewer instances portraying them as less visible than men.

Third, in both stages, men were represented in a greater number of social roles

than women who were mostly assigned stereotypical social roles, such as “sales

assistant / shop assistant”, “nurse”, “teacher ”, and “secretary”. Limiting women to

such stereotypical professions is probably a reflection of how women are usually seen

as fitting to play certain social roles. They were usually assigned social roles that have

to do with their maternal and nurturing abilities, such as “nurse” and “teacher”, or that

make them subordinate to men, such as “secretary”, because they were thought to be

less capable than men and of a more fragile nature. This finding coincided with that

reached in Özdoğru, Aksoy, Erdoğan and Gök’s (2006) study that men had a wider

range and higher level job opportunities than females. Similarly, Osman (2006)



17

reached the conclusion that occupations associated with females were extremely

limited compared to those of males and one of the most frequently mentioned

occupations for females was “secretary”. Furthermore, in Ram’s (2008) study, women

were also presented in stereotyped social roles, such as “nurse”. Hamdan’s (2010)

study showed males as practicing a variety of jobs while females were limited to

traditional jobs, such as teachers and nurses.

Fourth, men and women shared the same domestic roles in the primary stage

while in the preparatory stage they shared almost all the domestic roles. This might be

considered a point in favor of women; putting them in an equal stance with men.

Fifth, women and men shared an equal status in regards to being assigned

adjectives in the primary stage. However, in the preparatory stage, males dominated

in this category because they were modified with adjectives that had positive or

negative connotations more than women. An adjective is a describing word which

gives more information about the noun it qualifies. Thus, it is believed that because

men were considered of a higher value than women, they were qualified by an

adjective to give further information about them. On the other hand, women might

have been considered of less significance and were, therefore, less frequently

qualified by an adjective. Moreover, positive and negative adjectives that were

assigned to men and women could be considered stereotypical of males and females.

For example, men were frequently described as “safe”, “good”, and “lazy”, while

women were frequently described as “kind”, “hardworking”, and “tired”.

Sixth, no instances of binary male and female terms were mentioned in the

primary stage. However, in the preparatory stage, males appeared first in a wider

range of binary terms in which they were mentioned together with females. Some

examples of binary terms in which males appeared first were “father and mother”,



18

“grandfather and grandmother”, and “uncle and aunt”. Hence, men were often

revealed in the ascendancy over women as the latter were always shown as followers

and in lesser instances as the ones followed. Thus, a possible explanation of why

women often came after men whenever mentioned together might be that women in

the Egyptian culture are looked down upon and denigrated.

Seventh, illustrations were dominated by males as well in both stages. The

number of illustrations depicting men outnumbered those presenting women and both

genders. This was evidence of the power and dominance given to men as they were

present in most of the pages of the textbooks. Moreover, it is noteworthy to point out

that the number of mixed gender illustration was higher in the primary stage than in

the preparatory stage. In Osman’s (2006) study, the findings were not consistent in the

primary stage textbook and the secondary stage one. In the former, there was an

unprecedented progress of female over male representation, while in the latter,

females were underrepresented. Ram (2008) detected the overrepresentation of male

illustrations as a reflection of gender biases as found in Pakistan. This might be

evidence for the influence of Islam on these textbooks, because the Islamic religion is

against the frequent contact between men and women. Unlike primary stage learners,

preparatory stage learners are considered young adults who should start lessening

their contact with members of the opposite sex, according to Islamic beliefs. This

might be a possible account for why the illustrations representing mixed gender were

fewer in the preparatory stage than in the primary one.

In the second phase of analysis, gender imbalance was detected in favor of men

in almost all the categories in the primary and preparatory stages. In the first two

categories of analysis, men dominated in both primary and preparatory stages. For

example, in “Magdy worked”, “Magdy” is assigned the Actor role, and in “Magdy



19

helped him”, “Magdy” is not only assigned the Actor role, but is also materializing

with a goal “him”. Hence, men were more often depicted as the ones in control; the

doers, and as the ones with an impact on another person or object. Thus, being

assigned the Actor role and materializing with a goal ascertained how men were seen

and represented as more powerful.

As for the Senser role, men were also overrepresented in this category. An

example of a male assigned the Senser role in a mental process is “he thought”.

Although women were predicted to surpass in this category, it was men who were

more frequently mentioned in mental processes that have to do with feelings and

senses. This might be explained as a reflection of the Egyptian society in which

women are most often not welcomed to express their feelings in public.

In regards to the Possessor role, men and women were equally assigned this role

in the primary stage. However, in the preparatory stage, males were more frequently

assigned the Possessor role than females and than when both were assigned it, such as

in the following relational process: “He had lots of money”. This represented men as

more powerful than women; possessing things that women do not.

Although men and women were equally assigned the Sayer role in the primary

stage, males dominated in this category in the preparatory stage. An example of a

verbal process in which a male is assigned the Sayer role is “Terry” in “Terry asked

Ahmed”. Contrary to common belief, men were shown to be speaking more than

women who are usually stereotyped as talkative. However, this could be considered

evidence of men’s dominance as they held the floor as long as they wanted in most of

the excerpts that occurred in these textbooks.

Similarly, despite the fact that there were no instances of the Receiver role in

the primary stage, males surpassed females in this category in the preparatory stage,



20

such as “Terry” in “Hesham asked Terry”. Not only were men represented as hogging

the floor for long, they were also depicted as the listeners more than women. Hence,

men controlled both ends of most verbal exchanges; as addressers and addressees.

The Target role was the only category in which females surpassed men in this

study, such as “she” in “Soha told Hesham that she”. Women were assigned the role

of Target; the one spoken about. Therefore, even though women were overrepresented

in this category, it also considered evidence of male dominance. Because women are

intellectually, morally and socially inferior to men, they are less likely to talk about

men and it is more likely that they become the topic of men’s conversation.

To sum up, overall gender imbalance was demonstrated in almost all the

fourteen categories of analysis in this study. Males dominated most of the criteria in

the textbooks analyzed showing women as subordinate and inferior to men. Thus, it is

recommended that these textbooks be revised to eliminate any gender bias and

stereotypes that might foster negative beliefs about gender inequality in learners.

It is hoped that this analysis of the language of textbooks will contribute to the

field of education and stimulate further research to be undertaken in this area. It

would be enlightening to conduct a comparative study that would analyze English

language textbooks taught in international school in Egypt in contrast with the

textbooks that were analyzed in this study. In addition, it would be interesting to study

the impact of this gender imbalance on learners of both genders from a

psycholinguistic perspective.

References

Abu Nasr, J., Lorfing, I., & Jamileh Mikati, J. (1983). Identification and elimination

of sex stereotypes in and from school textbooks: Some suggestions for action in



21

the Arab world (Report No. ED-84/WS/31). Lebanon: Beirut University

College.

Blommaert, J., & Bulcaen, C. (2000). Critical discourse analysis. Annual review of

anthropology, 29, 447-466. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/223428

Britton, G. E., & Lumpkin, M. C. (1977). For sale: Subliminal bias in textbooks. The

reading teacher , 31(1), 40-45. Retrieved from

http://www.jstor.org/stable/20194453

Charmaz, K. (1994). The grounded theory method: An explication and interpretation.

In B. G.. Glacer (Ed.), More grounded theory methodology: A reader (pp. 95-

115). Mill Valley, CA: Sociology.

Chick, K. A. (2006). Gender balance in K-12 American History textbooks. Social

Studies Research and Practice, 1(3), 284-290.

Cooke-Sawyer, S. (1998). Gender bias and sex role stereotyping in grade seven

History textbooks (Master’s thesis, The University of Western Ontario,

Ontario). Available from ProQuest Dissertations and Theses database. (UMI

No. MQ39810)

Dijk, T. A. van. (2001). Critical discourse analysis. In D. Schiffrin, D. Tannen, & H.

E. Hamilton (Eds.), The handbook of discourse analysis (pp. 352-371). Malden,

USA: Blackwell.

Glaser, B. G. (1965). The constant comparative method of qualitative analysis. Social

problems, 12(4), 436-445. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/798843

Halliday, M. A. K. (1994). An introduction to functional grammar , 2nd ed. London:

Edward Arnold.



22

Hamdan, S. (2010). English-language textbooks reflect gender bias: A case study in

Jordan. Advances in gender and education, 2, 22-26. Retrieved from

http://www.mcrcad.org/2010-Hamdan.pdf

Hesse-Biber, S. N., & Leavy, P. L. (2007). Feminist research practice. Thousand

Oaks, CA: Sage.

Johansson, S., & Malmsjö, K. B. (2009). Gender bias in EFL textbook dialogues.

Retrieved from http://hdl.handle.net/2043/8217

Lazar, M., M. (2007). Feminist critical discourse analysis: Articulating a feminist

discourse praxis. Critical discourse studies, 4(2), 141-164. doi:

10.1080/17405900701464816

Mills, S. (1995). Feminist stylistics. London: Routledge.

Osman, E. A. (2006). Sexism in English language textbooks used in Egyptian primary

and high schools. In S. Kamel, H. Gindi, & M. Hashem (Eds.), Proceedings of

the 8th International Symposium on Comparative Literature. Power and the

Role of the Intellectual (pp. 247-257). Giza, Egypt: Department of English

Language and Literature, Faculty of Arts, Cairo University.

Özdoğru, A. A., Aksoy, G., Erdoğan, N., & Gök, F. (2006). Content analysis for

gender bias in Turkish elementary school textbooks. Retrieved from

http://www.albany.edu/eqre/papers/39EQRE.pdf

Pingel, F. (2010). UNESCO guidebook on textbook research and textbook revision.

Paris: UNESCO.

Ram, L. (2008). Do the primary school textbooks in Pakistan reflect gender biases? A

content analysis of illustrations. Journal of Research and Reflections in

Education, 2(2), 92-102.

http://hdl.handle.net/2043/8217



http://hdl.handle.net/2043/8217



Reinharz, S. (1992). Feminist methods in social research. New York: Oxford

University Press.

Rosa, K. S. (1999). Gendered technologies: Gender in electronic children’s literature

(Doctoral dissertation, University of Houston, Texas, USA). Available from

ProQuest Dissertations and Theses database. (UMI No. 9929292)

Sano, F., Iida, M., & Hardy, T. (2001). Gender representation in Japanese EFL

textbooks. Pan-Asian Consortium 3 at The Japan Association for Language

Teaching , Kitakyushu, Japan.

Sivasligil, P. (2006). Gender ideology in 6 th , 7 th and 8th grade coursebooks published

by the Turkish Ministry of National Education (Master’s thesis, The University

of Çukurova, Adana, Turkey).

Data Sources

West, J., & Hearns, C. (2006). Hello! English for primary schools: Year four . Pupil’s

book. Cairo: Egyptian International – Longman.

West, J., & Hearns, C. (2007). Hello! English for primary schools: Year five. Pupil’s


West, J., & Hearns, C. (2008). Hello! English for primary schools: Year six – Pupil’s


Thompson, S., & Dallas, D. (2005). Hello! English for preparatory schools: Year one

– Student’s book. Cairo: Egyptian International – Longman.

Thompson, S., & Dallas, D. (2006). Hello! English for preparatory schools: Year two

– Student’s book. Cairo: Egyptian International – Longman.

Thompson, S., & Dallas, D. (2007). Hello! English for preparatory schools: Year

three – Student’s book. Cairo: Egy ptian International – Longman.

Documents

Gender Representation in English Language Textbooks Taught in Egyptian Schools