Education - theorists Flashcards

Question

Machin and McNally (2005) | Gender in education

Answer 1

* Effects of National Literacy Project on attainment of boys and girls * Designed to drive up standards in literacy for all pupils * New teaching methods in 1997 appeared to raise attainment of boys in English and girls in maths * While strategies were effective for both girls and boys, magnitude of impact was greater for the gender that was generally weaker in a particular subject * For English 'literacy hour' had a greater impact on boys * One policy couldn't close gender gap

Answer 2

* Feminsation of education (the way in which education has become a female-dominated environment) * Made boys feel left comfortable within their learning environment * Generally girls are more willing to conform to the rules of the school whereas boys aren't * Disproportionate number of female teachers alienates them further from the school culture

Answer 3

* Working-class boys often experience bullying or being negatively labelled if they're hardworking * Girls often have subcultures that focus on working hard and doing well

Answer 4

* Boys more likely to be influenced from their male peer group which might devalue schoolwork and so put thus limiting academic achievement * Girls dont experience a conflict of loyalties between friends and school to the same extent as boys * Boys feel it's important to adopt a view of masculinity which sees academic work as feminine therefore negative perception of working * Masculinity conflicts with cuture of school wehere academic achievement is main way of being judged * Boys reject work to protect self worth and masculinity thorugh many strategies

Answer 5

* Despite girls have been recently caught up with boys in the sciences (achievement at GCSE) and continue to outperform boys at languages * Difference in subject choice at A-level * Gender narratives reflected in students' accounts of which subject they feel able and want to do * Gendered subject choices continue

Answer 6

* Gendered primary socialisation * Girls are given toys which encourage them to conform to a caregiving role * Boys are given toys which encourage them to be more active

Answer 7

* Peer pressure from boys and girls and male gaze encourages girls to behave in a stereotypically female way * Male gaze whereby male teachers' and students' behaviour reflects dominant ideas about masculinity

Answer 8

* Gender domains * Imagined areas, tasks and activities that are male and female * Domains encourage girls and boys to choose subjects that don't challenge their gender role * Gendered subjects are relavent to their experiences and existing knowledge

Answer 9

* Notions of fixed gender categories are changing * No one type of boy but an array of different constructions of masculinity * Sees the crisis in masculinity experienced by specific sectors of young working-class men who are low academic achievers and have little prospects of future work

Answer 10

* Gender gap at GCSE in 8 secondary schools * Looked at classroom interactions * Focus on perspective of teachers and year 11 pupils and observations of teacher-students interactions in classroom * Extent to which there is less psoitive tacher support for boys'learning than for girls' * Teachers believe they give equal treatment particularly in support of their learning * Focus group interviews with students and classroom observation suggests this is rarely achieved * Boys dominate classroom interactions * Girls participate more in teacher-student interactions * These patterns of interactions need to be challenged to enable boys to developm learning strategies similar to girls to increase academic achievement

Answer 11

* Level of segregation and isolation experienced by ethnic minorities * High levels of segregation for different groups both in and outside of school * Consistently higher segregation for South Asian students than for Black students * Concluded most children from ethnic minorities experience more segregation at school than in their neighbourhood

Answer 12

* Evidence suggests in wider society maagers will overtly discriminate against certain workers based on assumptions about their ethnic group * Pervading racism (intentional or unintentional) informs ethnic minorities of their position * Feeds into attitude towards school, teachers, wider society

Answer 13

* Reason for black African Caribbean underperformance is the absence of fathers * 50% of black Caribbean children live in lone-parent households * 22% of white children * Lack of a male role model makes it harder for some boys to adapt to the demands of school

Answer 14

* Some ethnic minorities lack language used in school * Puts them at an immediate disadvantage * Fact, English isn't spoken at home in a high proportion of Bangladeshhi families in the UK have been linked to poorer academic achievement ## Footnote AO3 * Not always the case as more complex patterns have emerged

Answer 15

* Found number of white non-native English speakers grew dramatically after the EU's enlargemment in 2005 * Big rise in demand for catholic schooling * In general this group of immigrants do not underperform because English isn't their first language * Reasons for this include immigrants from Eastern European countires are often better educated and have higher aspirations than other social groups * Children of such immigrants are likely to continue this pattern

Answer 16

* Criticises British education system * It is actually made black children become educationally subnormal by making them feel inferior * West Indian children were told their way of speaking was unaccapetable implying that they themselves were second-rate as human beings

Answer 17

* Gender differences in spatial ability (boys showing greater spatial awareness) may be attributed to the types of toys children play with rather than genetic make-up

Answer 18

* Bedroom culture * Girls can create their own subcultures and chat and read contributes towards their communication skills * important and valued in education ## Footnote * Boys tend to carry out activities that are more physical and don't contribute to their educational development * Boys' subcultures in and outside of schill tend to regard hard-working negatively placing significant pressure on them to maintain their image by doing minimum work

Answer 19

* Attitudes of working-class girls in London schooles early 1970s abd 1990s * Found in 1990s girls were much more confident, assertive, ambitious and commited to greater gender equality * 1970s girls main priorities were love, marriage, husbands and children * 1990s girls priorities were job, career and being able to support themselves * 1994 found girls were increasingly cautious about marriage * Girls' aspiration were focused more on being independent through becoming highly educated

Answer 20

* African-caribbeangirls in a London comprehensive * Investigated how they respond to negative stereotypes from teachers by forming anti-school subcultures * Did not try to gain approval from their teachers who they often saw as racist * Worked hard at their school work while appearing to reject school rules * Suggests students have a variety of responses to labelling and negative labelling by teachers doesn't always lead to underachievement

Answer 21

* Found often teachers regarded black students as stereotypically macho * Found when black boys were labelled negatively or experienced racism they tended to have a range of different responses

Answer 22

* Descrives how black boys and girls might respond differently to institutional racism * Claims that black girls will comply with formal rules but will withhold real engagement with the organisation * Black boys will challenge the school culture more directly and therefore more likely to be excluded

Answer 23

* 2 secondary schools showing real costs of reform in terms of the pressures on teachers and the rationing of educational oppurtunity * Recent educational reforms have raised standards of achievement but raised inequalities based on ethnicity and social class * Introduction of league tables * Created an A-C economy where schools and teachers are judged on the proportion of stuents attaining 5 or more grades at A-C * Schools are devloping new and more selective attempts to identify able students * Results in measures of intelligence that label working-class and minority students as likely to fail which justifies rationing provision to supports those labelled as likely to succeed (white, middle-class, boys)

Answer 24

* Attainment differences were due to contrast in attitudes to education between ethnic minority and white people * High aspirations ammong immigrants who 'almost by definition' are 'keen to get on life' * With qualifications linked to social progress it makes sense to focus particular effort at that point

Answer 25

* Researched how African-Caribbean students were regarded by their teachers, peers and white students * at an inner city boys' comprehensive school * Found school expectations and influences (e.g. fashion and music) promoted sexist and racist perceptions of black masculinity * Highlights concepts of masculinity and ethnicity are complex and shifting requiring more research to be fully understood

Answer 26

* Criticises Labour policies * unable to tackle inequality with the development of marketisation * While consempatory edication policies e.g. Education Matnteinance Allowances may have encouraged working-class students to sat until 18 yrs but tution fees for higher education may deter them from university * Policies create an illusion of equality between classes

Answer 27

* Investigated vocational education * Claimed vocational education often does not lead to jobs and university * Recommended all students remained in compulsory education to age 16 and longwer work-based placements for students age 16+ who wish to enter employment

Answer 28

Claimed that education system needs to prioritise British history and culture