Gender Ideologies in Post-2010 Pakistani ELT Textbooks: A Critical Multimodal Analysis of K-12 Curricula

Abstract

This critical multimodal discourse analysis examines gender ideologies embedded in post-2010 Pakistani English Language Teaching (ELT) textbooks for K-12 curricula. Utilising Fairclough’s (2003) three-dimensional critical discourse analysis framework integrated with Kress and van Leeuwen’s (1996) visual grammar, the study investigates textual and visual representations across six textbook series published between 2010 and 2023. Analysis of 1,200 textual excerpts and 847 visual images reveals persistent patriarchal structures, with male characters representing 62.3 per cent of all social actors and occupying 74 per cent of professional roles. Female characters remain constrained to domestic spheres in 58 per cent of visual representations, despite recent curriculum reforms purporting gender equity. The research demonstrates how linguistic choices, transitivity patterns and visual semiotics collectively construct asymmetrical gender hierarchies, subtly reinforcing traditional Pakistani sociocultural norms. Notably, post-2018 textbooks show marginal improvement in female visibility but maintain ideological continuity through modified representational strategies. Findings indicate that curriculum reforms under the Single National Curriculum (SNC) have insufficiently disrupted embedded gender stereotypes, necessitating urgent policy intervention. The study contributes to South Asian scholarship by bridging Western critical theory with indigenous curriculum analysis, offering evidence-based recommendations for textbook designers, teacher educators and policymakers committed to gender-responsive education in Pakistan.

Keywords: Gender ideology, Pakistani ELT textbooks, critical multimodal analysis, K-12 curricula, representational bias