Education: External factors for gender difference in achievement (boys)

Question 1

Boys and literacy

Answer 1

It has been suggested that the reason for the gender gap in education is mainly due to boys poor literacy and language skills.

Question 2

Globalisation and the decline of traditional male jobs

Answer 2

Due to deindustralisation, there has been a decline in manual heavy labour industries.

Question 2

Why do boys tend to have poorer literacy than girls?

Answer 2

Parents tend to spend less time reading to their sons as they would their daughters. Additionally, boys normally see their mothers reading which then causes them to associate reading with being feminine.
Boys hobbies include sports which doesnt help to develop their communication and language skills which doesnt benefit their education.

Link this to restricted speech codes and contrast it with females and the bedroom culture.

Question 3

Boys and literacy A03

Answer 3

The government has introduced many policies that aim to improve boys skills like reading champions use male rodels celebrating their own reading interests.
National literacy strategy - increased literacy hours in schools.

Question 4

Mistos and Browne (decline in traditional mens jobs)

Answer 4

They claim that due to deindustralisation, men have an ‘identity crisis’ and a ‘crisis of masculinity’ thus causing males to feel as though they have a small chance at ever getting a proper job to demonstrate their masculinity. Thus causing them to give up on education.

Question 5

Decline of traditional mens jobs A03

Answer 5

Most manual jobs require little to no academic knowledge.

Question 6

Ringrose (moral panic of boys underachievement)

Answer 6

Ringrose believes that the moral panic elicits that underachieving males will become a part of dangerous unemployed underclass. Ringrose believes that tackling male underachievement doesnt tackle all roots of underachievement and that it ignores problems that females face in education like sexual harrassment.

Question 7

Moral panic of male underachievement

Answer 7

It is argued that there is an exaggeration of male underachievement, there will not be an increase in unemployed male criminals.

Question 8

Osler (moral panic of male underachievement)

Answer 8

Osler argues that focusing on males behaviour causes people to ignore rise in female exclusions and poor behaviour.