The IFS is pleased to announce the successful launch of the IFS Virtual Keynote Series 2023. On January 16, two internationally renowned and outstanding researchers presented their current research on the topic of "Gender, Education, and Development Across the Lifespan". The event kicked off with Professor Claudia Buchmann from Ohio State University. During her presentation, "Gender Inequalities Across the Educational Lifespan: Challenges for Scholars and Schools", she spoke about gender inequality in education. She explained that in much of the world today, girls/women have surpassed boys/men in both academic achievement and educational attainment, presented the impact that gender norms and stereotypes have on academic achievement, and discussed how teachers and schools can help reduce these inequalities.

In the second keynote, Professor Mieke Van Houtte of Ghent University spoke on "Gender Gaps in Education: The Role of Stereotypes". She, too, emphasized that international studies suggest that educational inequalities between the genders today favor girls/women. She focused on different dimensions of gender stereotypes for possible explanations: Among other things, she showed that boys are more influenced by social pressures to behave in a gender-conforming manner than girls – with gendered youth cultures being less learning-oriented for boys than for girls. Over the course of a lifetime, such gender differences caused educational careers and gender inequalities, which for boys, for example, ended in more frequent school and training dropouts, while women were less likely to be found in apprenticeships leading to more lucrative and prestigious jobs.

In the concluding discussion, both professors emphasized that it was crucial to break away from gender-stereotypical thinking. Thank you once again for the enlightening and interesting lectures as well as the lively discussions afterwards!