Introduction: Starting with concepts: A (Re)introduction

The introductory chapter introduces the key questions that underpin the overall project of Starting With Gender in International Higher Education Research: where, when and for whom does gender appear in higher education systems and spaces? Which terms and issues are included within the concept of gender, and how do choices we make about the meaning of gender affect the ways that we come to understand higher education? What does it mean to look for gender in higher education, and how might we think and research higher education differently through multiple understandings of gender? The book’s introductory chapter-Starting With Concepts-addresses why we decided to focus on developing a more nuanced understanding of gender in international higher education research, in terms of (i) the continued presence of gender equality as a target for education systems worldwide, (ii) the necessity of situating these international debates within properly contextualized local systems and issues and (iii) the growing importance of higher education in international education policy debates. The chapter explains what we mean by a nuanced conceptualization of gender and how we have chosen the concepts that frame each chapter of the book.