The structure and agency of women's education /

In this edited collection, Maslak (St. John's Univ.) presents a series of contributed articles that utilize feminist critical theory (with a focus on the interactions of agency and structure) to explore gender inequality in education worldwide. This particular approach to analyzing gender inequality provides a welcome new framework to the literature on gender and education. In the first part of the book, the dense theoretical discourse is more geared for graduate students and scholars, but most of the later chapters provide rich descriptive material and readable, as well as compelling, qualitative and policy analysis appropriate for undergraduates. The varied analyses of the concept of agency allow student readers to grasp the multifaceted meaning of this important concept. The geographic focus of the articles is Africa and Asia, and in those national and regional settings valuable insights emerge regarding the impact of state policies (and NGOs) on empowering women through education. The final two chapters on the innovative methodological techniques, FotoDialago and Photovoice, not only showcase two valuable new forms of analysis, but also illustrate how methodology, as well as well-designed programs and policies, can be agents for positive change. Summing Up: Recommended. Students of all levels through professionals. N. E. Sacks Stony Brook University