Differential achievement by gender. (education)

Question 1

Why is data for gender and achievement easily collected ?

Answer 1

it is routinely collected.

Question 2

What happened to students results in GCSE ?

Answer 2

The gap between girls and boys has grown through the last decade to reach nearly 9 percent in 2016 in favour of girls.

Question 3

What results are seen at A - levels in terms of gender achievement ?

Answer 3

Girls outperform boys, but boys are more likely to get A stars whilst girls get more A’s.

Question 4

What is one possible reason for boys statistically being seen as underperforming?

Answer 4

Underachieving boys are taken out of these statistics and are taking other qualifications instead such as apprenticeships.

Question 5

What subjects do boys particularly outperform girls in ?

Answer 5

Maths and science.

Question 6

What out of school factors led to boys outperforming girls ?

Answer 6

The belief that boys brains were better designed for rational thought and girls were too emotional, girls were expected to leave school, get married etc and so only a minority of girls had a career.

Question 7

What out of school factors led to girls outperforming boys ?

Answer 7

Female role models (have empowered women to work hard and achieve), greater equality for women in society has made educational achievement more worthwhile for girls and so a corresponding boost in girls achievement.

Question 8

What study was conducted in 1994 and who conducted it ?

Answer 8

“Just like a girl” was a study created by Sue Sharpe.

Question 9

What did Sue Sharpe’s study look at / show ?

Answer 9

It looked at girls attitudes and priorities in the early 1970’s compared to the 1990’s and how they had changed and how society constrained women and limited their aspirations.

Question 10

What were the results of Sue Sharpe’s study and why?

Answer 10

That in the early 1970’s girls priorities were marriage and children with careers at the bottom due to early gender socialisation which meant that girls attached little importance to education.

In comparison, in the early 1990’s there had been a “gender quake” which resulted in a reverse of priorities with careers coming first and marriage last. Girls were more confident and ambitious.

Question 11

What did Sue Sharpe’s study show about working class girls priorities / attitudes ?

Answer 11

That their aspirations didn’t necessarily add up to their real experiences, and were still expected to prioritise family over career and do a bulk of the housework.

Question 12

What was a main reason for girls changes in attitude and some examples?

Answer 12

Changes in the law. E.g. Equal pay act, sex discrimination act etc.

Question 13

What material factors changed with the feminist movement ?

Answer 13

Girls magazines, television programmes, toys all changed to reflect and reinforce social change.

Question 14

What factors resulted in the change in the role and status of women ?

Answer 14

Feminist movement, the change in the nature of work for women, change in family life / family structure (move towards more symmetrical families), change in media representations of women and girls.

Question 15

What did Sharpe point out that is still not happening in society ?

Answer 15

Despite the changes in gender roles which have led to changes in priorities and aspirations for girls, there is still a long way to go and women are still oppressed in society (gender pay gap, glass ceiling etc) so whilst girls educational achievement has improved due to changes in gender roles, it is not the single reason why girls outperform boys.

Question 16

What was New Rights theory on differential achievement ?

Answer 16

It was due to feckless boys not working hard in school.

Question 17

What has the change in economy resulted in ?

Answer 17

Despite boys in the 1950’s / 1960’s outperforming girls in education despite them going on to do work in industries that does not require qualifications, whereas today gaining qualifications is crucial as jobs in industries have mainly gone and so the opposite attitude change is expected.

Question 18

What in school factors meant that girls underperformed in education ?

Answer 18

Teachers low expectations, resources reinforcing gender stereotypes, boys dominance of the classroom / monopolising the teachers attention, deference and passivity of girls (in comparison to assertiveness and competitiveness of boys), girls worrying that intelligence was an unattractive characteristic, schools careers guidance pushing girls towards low paid / domestic roles, gender division of subjects enforcing gender stereoypes.

Question 19

Who suggested the in - school factors of why girls underperformed ?

Answer 19

Michelle Stanworth, Carol Dweck.

Question 20

Why are girls now outperforming boys ?

Answer 20

Girls mature faster than boys and so has suggested that they do so interlectually but not everybody agrees with this view, feminisation of education, initiatives to support girls (GIST, WISE), 1988 education reform act, girls are now being labelled as the ideal pupil with boys being more likely to join / form anti - school subcultures, teachers turning a blind eye to ‘laddish’ behaviour.

Question 21

What did Sewell suggest in 2006 as to why girls outperformed boys ?

Answer 21

The feminisation of education, with more women teaching education,

Question 22

What idea was put forward in 1998 and by who ?

Answer 22

Mitsos and Browne suggested that girls were more organised and more perfectionist, and so coursework suited them better than boys who suited exams more.

Question 23

What did the 1988 education reform act result in ?

Answer 23

The National Curriculum meant that all students must study sciences so gender division subjects were massively reduced leading to more girls aspiring to do well in such subjects and going on to university / high income occupations.

Question 24

What did a change in labelling result in ?

Answer 24

Girls became labelled as the ‘ideal pupil’ who respond with attention and hard work with boys being labelled to be more trouble. Girls who misbehaved were seen as being ‘doubly deviant’.

Question 25

What did Swann and Graddol suggest ?

Answer 25

Interactions between girls and teachers are educational whereas interactions with boys were more about discipline / crowd control.

Question 26

What has been suggested to counter the idea that girls do better because of coursework ?

Answer 26

Coursework has massively reduced yet girls still outperform boys suggesting that they do better in exams as well and that being organised is crucial for exams as well as coursework.

Question 27

What did Elwood (2005) say ?

Answer 27

That even when there was more coursework in qualifications exam performance was the primary indicator of a final grade.

Question 28

What is happening to boys performance in education ? (positive)

Answer 28

Boys are still doing well in education and are improving, just not as quickly as girls which suggests that the in school factors as to why boys underachieve could be mis - directed.