Transforming education in Zimbabwe through gender-responsive pedagogy

Imagine a classroom where every student feels valued, supported, and able to reach their full potential regardless of gender. That vision comes to life when education systems are gender-responsive by design and when teachers are fully capacitated to drive this agenda in the classroom through their pedagogy.

Zimbabwe has made significant strides toward gender parity in education, at least at the policy level, marked by progressive legislative reforms such as the 2013 Constitution and the 2025 National Gender Policy. The government has embraced the Gender-Responsive Education Sector Planning program to ensure that the education system is designed to be gender responsive. The National Gender Policy likewise mandates that teacher training institutions incorporate gender issues in all curricula, eliminate discrimination, and promote girls’ participation in science, mathematics, and technology. But are these policy goals making their way to the country’s teachers and into classroom practices?

The need for gender-responsive pedagogy

Gender-transformative education means that all young people must not only have equal access to, but also benefit equally from, education and the entire teaching and learning processes. In Zimbabwe, the school completion rates for girls continue to be lower than those of boys, particularly in secondary school. In Upper Secondary School, only about 30% of girls complete upper secondary school, compared to 34% of boys. In 2021, 8,000 more girls than boys dropped out of secondary school, doubling the disparity from 2019.

Gender-responsive pedagogy (GRP) is seen by policy makers and international actors as key to responding to these challenges. GRP can foster inclusive and equitable learning environments, strengthen girls’ participation, encourage critical thinking, and integrate socioemotional learning. Yet while GRP holds significant promise for addressing gender barriers in schools in Zimbabwe, we still lack a clear understanding of how it is being understood by teachers and practiced in real classroom settings and to what extent it is supporting learners to learn better and realize their full potential, especially girls.

Supporting gender-responsive teachers and teaching

In recent years, Zimbabwe has provided extensive in-service support for its teachers through government-led programs and partner initiatives. These efforts have focused on a variety of districts, education levels, and subject areas, responding to different needs identified on the ground. Since 2021, for example, the British Council has supported the Ministry of Education to train school leaders through the Leading Learning for Gender Equality program. This program aims to strengthen school leaders’ abilities to promote gender equality and improve teaching quality. The “Whole School Approach” piloted between 2018 and 2020 by the Forum for African Women Educationalists Zimbabwe Chapter sought to prevent school-related gender-based violence and promote safe learning environments in part by fostering gender-responsive teaching and learning methods. The Teacher Effectiveness and Equitable Access for All Children program focuses on improving the quality and effectiveness of teaching across Zimbabwe, aiming to “strengthen the national education system, making it more sustainable and ensuring that it offers high-quality teaching which is equitably accessible to all children.” 

These are but a few examples. Several other INGOs have implemented additional teacher professional development programs with special focus on GRP and meeting specific learner needs. These efforts have been met by challenges, including a high teacher-pupil ratio of up to 1:50 in a class. Additionally, despite these initiatives we still have limited research on teachers’ understanding and application of gender-responsive teaching strategies.

As a 2025 Echidna Global Scholar at Brookings, I will bring my more than 20 years’ experience working in the education sector in Zimbabwe to research that explores the extent to which policies and training for GRP have reached teachers and what is transpiring in the classroom. Effective training on GRP will need to reach all teachers, including technical and vocational education and secondary school trainers and student teachers, if we hope to successfully implement GRP policies in Zimbabwe. Developing a contextualized, teacher-centered approach to GRP is more relevant than ever as the country prepares to launch a new Heritage-Based Curriculum, meant to align the education system with the country’s cultural heritage and promote national identity in Zimbabwe.

By prioritizing GRP, Zimbabwe hopes to create more equitable and supportive learning environments that benefit all students. My research will provide key evidence to the ministry of primary and secondary education by clearly articulating the most pressing needs of teachers in implementing gender-responsive pedagogy, which will inform teacher training programs and strategies. With continued efforts and commitment, Zimbabwe can take a significant step towards achieving improved learning outcomes and a better quality of life for all pupils.