A STUDY ON THE PERCEPTIONS AND PRACTICES OF GENDER EQUALITY AND GENDER STEREOTYPES AMONG KINDERGARTEN TEACHERS IN MACAO

This study employs a qualitative research method to explore kindergarten teachers' perceptions of gender stereotypes, their views on gender equality education, and how these concepts are implemented in their teaching practices. Additionally, it analyses the challenges faced in promoting gender equality education in Macao and offers relevant recommendations. The study participants comprised eight in-service kindergarten teachers (four males and four females) working at four kindergartens in Macao. Through semi-structured in-depth interviews, the study delves into the teachers' experiences and perspectives on implementing gender equality education in kindergartens. The study concludes with the following findings:
1. Teachers have a basic understanding of gender equality; however, influenced by societal traditions and family cultures, gender stereotypes still persist in their teaching. While teachers can recognise and reflect on the presence of these stereotypes and understand the core concepts of gender equality education, they still lack a comprehensive grasp of its substantive content.
2. When practising gender equality education, teachers exhibit varying degrees of gender stereotyping and bias. Male teachers, in particular, display more evident gender bias compared to female teachers, especially in their disciplinary approaches towards male and female students, with male teachers being more stringent with boys. However, no significant gender differences were observed in classroom performance, behavioural discipline, academic achievements, or task distribution. This suggests that teachers treat students of both genders relatively equally, with no clear link to their personal backgrounds.
3. Regarding gender equality and social status, male teachers generally express higher satisfaction levels than female teachers. Male teachers believe that gender equality has been achieved, whereas female teachers feel that women remain at a disadvantage in terms of work conditions and family responsibilities.
4. Teachers identify several challenges in promoting gender equality in education in Macao. This includes deep-rooted societal cultures, insufficient awareness and understanding of gender equality education among the government, the public, teachers, and parents; gender stereotypes in textbooks and school environments; the lack of gender-related content in textbooks; and the gender imbalance among kindergarten teachers, with a marked shortage of male teachers.
5. Teachers suggest that the government should collaborate with experts to provide more relevant teacher training or community seminars for teachers and the public. These initiatives should aim to challenge gender stereotypes, re-evaluate the content of textbooks and the setup of school environments, and promote the feasibility and necessity of male kindergarten teachers.
Based on the study's findings, the researcher offers several recommendations for advancing gender equality education in Macao, providing concrete ideas and reasonable references. It is hoped that these suggestions will serve as valuable references for future related research.

本研究採用質性研究法，旨在探討幼稚園教師對性別刻板印象的看法、性別平等教育的理念以及在教學中實踐的情況，並分析在澳門推行性別平等教育所面對的挑戰及相關建議。研究對象來自澳門四所幼稚園的八位在職幼稚園教師（4男4女），研究透過半結構式深度訪談，深入探討教師在幼稚園推行性別平等教育中的經驗和觀點。本研究得出以下結論： （一） 教師對性別平等已有基本概念，但因受到社會傳統文化及個人家庭文化的影響，在教學中仍存在性別刻板印象。教師能察覺和反思這些刻板印象的存在，並瞭解性別平等教育的基本核心概念，然而對其實質內容的理解仍有不足之處。 （二） 在實踐性別平等教育時，教師表現出不同程度的性別定型及性別偏見。其中，男教師相較於女教師表現出更為明顯的性別偏見，尤其體現在針對兩性的學生的管教方式上，男教師對男生的態度較為嚴厲。然而，教師在課堂表現、行為紀律、學業成績、職務分配等方面則未顯示出顯著的性別差異，能相對平等地要求及對待兩性的學生，這與教師的個人背景因素並沒有明顯關聯。 （三） 在兩性平等與社會地位問題上，男性教師的滿意度普遍高於女性教師。男性教師認為兩性地位已達至平等，而女教師則認為在工作待遇和家庭層面上，女性仍處於較為不利的地位。 （四） 教師認為在澳門推行性別平等教育面臨的挑戰包括：根深蒂固的社會文化，政府、大眾、教師及家長對性別平等教育的關注和認知不足；教科書及學校環境設置存在的性別刻板印象，以及教科書中缺乏性別議題內容；幼稚園教師的性別比例失衡，男教師明顯偏少。 （五） 教師建議政府需要與專家合作，提供更多相關的師資培訓或社區講座，供教師及市民參與，並以突破性別刻板印象為目標，重新審視教科書及學校環境的設置，同時加強宣傳男性幼稚園教師的可行性及必要性。 基於上述研究結果，研究者對澳門性別平等教育的推行提出了若干建議，並提供了具體的思路和合理的參考依據。期望這些建議能為未來相關研究提供參考。