Gender awareness among adolescent students in Kerala: An exploratory study

Acording to Article 15 of the Indian Constitution, the Right to Equality has to be guaranteed to every individual irrespective of class, caste and gender but the question is whether this right is practised. Gender issues have become a common issue in society. Violence against women, sexual harassment of women and children, and transgender issues are increasing day by day. A possible solution to end these issues is to impart gender education to the younger generation. Gender education should start with family and schools as the children spend most of their time with family and in the school environment. Hence, the researcher intends to understand the gender awareness of adolescent children, especially from 8^th standard students from a co-education school in the Thiruvananthapuram district through qualitative research. In this study, the researcher explored perceptions and attitudes toward gender equity among school-going adolescents. The researcher used FGD, participant observation and case studies as tools for data collection. The study gave insight to the researcher on the perception of gender how the students understand gender issues, and their reflections on gender equality. The study provided valuable insights into the importance of gender-neutral parenting and the significance of early gender education within both family and school environments.