Collaborative e-learning - an opportunity to identify and to overcome gender barriers

Gender mainstreaming, as a consequence of the gender concept, means that there is no such a thing as gender-neutral policies. Gender politics cannot be restricted to special domains such as family politics, and the challenge to overcome gender barriers cannot be managed by isolated measures such as establishing women‘s representatives in organizations [Metz-Göckel/Kamphans 2005]. According to the gender mainstreaming approach all measures taken in politics and in all kinds of organization have an influence on gender-related problems and questions. Gender mainstreaming is not the same as promotion of women or a politics of equalization of women, but rather a politics of equalizing the opportunities for the development of both for men and women. „Contrary to existing policies for the promotion of women, gender mainstreaming intends to make the principles of equal rights the basis for all policies and a duty for all managers. Thereby, gender mainstreaming has become a central managerial task“.