Gender perspective as a dimension of democracy in schools

Otherness, the recognition of the non-hegemonic other, is one of the dimensions to work on in the construction of democracy in schools. In this article, we analyse the relationship between sex and gender, and democracy, based on case analysis of five preschool and primary education centres in Catalonia. In each centre, democracy occupies a prominent place in the educational project. The main finding emphasizes that these centres, where democracy is a cornerstone, seldom consider the dimension of gender perspective. Therefore, gender equality policies, increasingly present in the guidelines and legislation of educational administrations, have little impact. However, in one of the centres analyzed, the democratic project is linked to social transformation, which does include gender relations. This is an example of implementation, from the bottom up, based on the reflection and participation of the entire educational community.