Category: Initiative
Area: Stereotyping, Bias in guidance
Place/Country: Fyn, Denmark
Date: 24/5-22 and 14/3-23
Institutions involved:
- Education and vocational guidance and counselling (EUK) – KL – Local Government Denmark
- The Danish Evaluation Institute (EVA)
- Youth Guidance and Counselling Service (UUO)- South Fyn
- Youth Guidance and Counselling Service (UUO)-Odense
Target group: Secondary education guidance counsellors
Goals / Objectives /Aims:
- To increase awareness of bias and stereotypes in career guidance.
- To discuss possible strategies for gender-sensitive guidance.
Content / Structure / Description including strengthening action competence
24/5-22: Conference with the participation of around 100 secondary education guidance counsellors. One of the speakers were Sociologist Cecilie Nørgaard, who gave a presentation on bias, the unconscious norms we all have and how unconscious norms/bias are transferred to non-gender-neutral educational counselling.
The counsellors participated in a workshop, where they worked on identifying own bias and norms.
14/3-23: Theme day with the participation of around 100 secondary education guidance counsellors. Nina Groes, Director of BOSSLadies and two ambassadors, participated and shared their work. Lector Tekla Canger (University College Copenhagen) came and educated the counselors on the subject of gender-sensitive pedagogy. E.g. how they can approach and work with teenagers/young adults in a more gender-sensitive way.
The counsellors participated in a workshop, where they worked on strategies to change their own counselling to become more gender-sensitive.
Results / Responses → Resulting Competences:
The guidance counsellors tell that, they became much more aware on their own norms and bias. They are now actively looking at their material and making changes, so the material is more gender neutral. E.g. wording and pictures used.
Feedback / Evaluation of the practice:
The counsellors have gained an awareness and plan to continue to work with the issue on a regular basis.
