This paper, intended as a tool for education programmers, presents a framework designed to address inequalities in education and help ensure that education projects meet the needs of all learners. Using an approach that takes into account the relations and interaction between males and females (i.e., gender dynamics), the Gender Equality Framework addresses four dimensions of equality in education: equality of access, equality in the learning process, equality of educational outcomes, and equality of external results. Sections on each of the four dimensions include concrete activities that can be implemented as part of an overall strategy to achieve gender equality in education.

This technical brief examines the relationship between gender disparities and the spread of HIV/AIDS. It also offers suggestions for USAID staff and implementing partners on designing appropriate education sector strategies for mitigating the impacts of HIV/AIDS by addressing gender inequality.

This document introduces a simple framework within which often misunderstood terms and concepts are reviewed in easily understood terminology. The Gender Equality Framework is based on the results from USAID education program assessments conducted during the past decade that revealed the need for a tool to help USAID move education programming toward achieving gender equality. The framework was developed and introduced by the EQUATE project with support from the USAID Office of Women in Development and in consultation with USAID education staff, implementing partners, and other stakeholders.

This is a visual framework that demonstrates how to address the various elements of gender equality.

This is a one-page glossary of common terms related to gender integration and equity.

By integrating gender considerations into solicitations, education officers can ensure that proposed activities address the root causes of problems and overcome the barriers and constraints to education for boys and girls. This report provides education officers with a systematic way of ensuring that gender considerations are comprehensively addressed in the solicitation and during the technical evaluation process. The guide is divided into two sections: guidelines for developing solicitations and guidelines for reviewing proposals/applications.

Results from an EQUATE assessment in Zambia highlight the importance of interviewing boys and girls about their educational experiences. This brief offers insight into how gender considerations influence and shape the educational experiences of students. Conducted as part of an assessment for USAID/Zambia, this study involved thirteen girls and fourteen boys from a peri-urban area outside of Lusaka. Their responses reiterate how boys and girls notice and value educational quality differently and suggest areas that programmers and educators can improve upon by considering the perspectives and experiences of students.

This report summarizes the proceedings of a gender assessment and education strategy workshop held in Lusaka, Zambia between May 23 - 27, 2005. The workshop was conducted for USAID/Zambia by Management Systems International (MSI) with support from EQUATE, a task order under the Office of Women in Development. The workshop is the second part of a two-stage effort to improve USAID education programming, which began with an assessment of the status of gender equality in Zambian education. Assessment findings were used to help USAID/Zambia improve educational access and quality for Zambian students, especially boy and girl orphans and vulnerable children, in current and future education programming.

This assessment explores the role that gender plays in boys' and girls' development, performance, and outcomes in school, with the goal of unearthing strategies that could address differential performance and impact. The research examines the nature and function of gender dynamics in teaching and learning at home, at school, and in the wider society. USAID/Jamaica commissioned this study to determine the reasons for, and possible interventions to address, the underachievement of male students.