Gender and Education in Pakistan: The Shifting Dynamics across Ethnic Groups

A lot has been written on gender and access to education in Pakistan mostly discussing the stark gender inequalities with regard to education. This very brief article aims to look at the ethnic differentiation with regard to attitudes to girls’ education and challenge the established wisdom that poorer families prefer to educate boys rather than girls. The article argues that ethnic differentiations are important when looking at traditional perceptions of girls accessing and participating in education. The article also argues that attitudes change primarily when educational facilities can be accessed and where the power of education is witnessed by the families on a first hand basis.