Feminist Pedagogy: A Framework for Nursing Education?

This article describes the feminist pedagogical strategies used in a nursing course in the post-RN Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BScN) program, Aga Khan University, Karachi, Pakistan. A variety of concepts that have direct relevance for nurses were discussed within small groups. These settings provided the venue for an examination of the issues that nurses, as primarily female, face in a patriarchal Muslim society and an androcentric health care system. Emphasis is on the process used in terms of feminist pedagogical practices and its relationship to feminist theory and critical pedagogy. The five process goals suggested by Schniedewind (1983) formed the basis for an exploration of this relationship through an analysis of the content and practices used in the course. It is demonstrated that the teaching practices advocated by feminist pedagogy hold much promise for nursing education to empower nurses and to make an impact on the health care system.