Third Online Conversation: Launch of the ETI Gender Equality and Social Inclusion Framework for Researchers

On Thursday, April 24, the third Online Conversation from the Empowering Teachers Initiative (ETI) entitled: “ETI Gender Equality and Social Inclusion Framework for Researchers” was held.

The event saw the launch of the “Embedding Gender Equality and Social Inclusion (GESI) in Research with Teachers: A Self-Assessment Framework”, a new self-evaluation tool designed to help researchers working with teachers more systematically integrate a GESI perspective into their studies. 

The conversation began with welcoming remarks by Victoria Tinio, Executive Director of FIT-ED, who commented that she believes “this tool is not just a useful resource, but a valuable contribution to the broader GESI literature as well, one that hopefully will be helpful to researchers navigating complex realities on the ground”.

Ingrid Lynch, Researcher focused on Intersectional Gender Justice and the main creator of this framework, then made a presentation, giving a brief summary of the purpose of this tool, its structure, how it was developed and its link to ETI research teams.

The event continued with a panel discussion that included the participation of Marzia Ibrahim, Senior Program Associate, IT for Change, India; Carolina Gamba, GESI Specialist, ESCAL.AR: Models for Teacher Professional Development in Initial Literacy in Argentina, FLACSO Argentina; and Kristeen Chachage, Member of the EdTech Hub specialist network and Co-investigator of the ETI study in Tanzania, all of them part of ETI’s research teams. 

During the panel, researchers reflected on how they have used this practical tool to move towards transformative GESI practices in their research.

The event ended with a reflection by Eunice Kamaara, Professor of African Christian Ethics at Moi University, Kenya, who contributed with an interesting analysis of this framework, commenting that “context matters, what is applicable in one area, may not be applicable in another area, what is applicable today, may not be applicable tomorrow because humans are complex… and I would like to appreciate this tool because it seems to put emphasis on these issues”. 

About the “Online Conversation” series

The Online Conversations Series, organized by ETI, brings together high-level experts, policymakers, organizations, researchers, among other key actors from the international educational arena to analyze and discuss how to improve teacher professional development at scale in the Global South. Check the previous webinars here.