Assessing gender equality, diversity, and social inclusion for social justice in Philippine higher education through an integrative bibliometric and qualitative analysis

Abstract

This study investigates the implementation of gender equality, diversity, and social inclusion (GEDSI) in higher education in the Philippines using an integrative bibliometric and qualitative approach. The bibliometric analysis examined national research outputs from 2020 to 2025 mapped to SDG 5 (Gender Equality), SDG 10 (Reduced Inequalities), SDG 4 (Quality Education), and SDG 16 (Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions). The qualitative component involved three focus group sessions with nine teacher educators (four male, four female, one non-binary) from five campuses of a single teacher education institution. The findings reveal low GEDSI-related research productivity nationally, particularly for SDG 5, SDG 10, and SDG 16, with the Philippines ranking sixth in Southeast Asia. At the case institution, educators demonstrated high conceptual awareness of GEDSI but reported minimal changes to their teaching practices, revealing what we term an ‘awareness–action gap’, a pattern observed within this single-institution sample. Systemic barriers included unsynchronized planning between the gender office and academic units, the absence of dedicated research funding or explicit policies, dress code policing, and patriarchal societal norms. This study offers actionable policy and practice recommendations, including mandated joint planning, targeted research funding, annual bias training, and peer observation for GEDSI-integrated teaching methods. The qualitative findings were drawn from a single institution (nine educators across five campuses of one teacher education institution) and should not be generalized without further validation. The bibliometric analysis supports conclusions about national patterns but not about the experiences of educators nationwide. Future research with larger multi-institutional samples is needed to determine whether the observed patterns extend beyond this single institution.