Education topic 3B- gender and achievement

Question 1

who was the main focus for educational underachievement in the 1980s and 1990s

Answer 1

1980s- focus on girls underachievement 
1990s- girls began to outperform boys, particularly working-class boys

Question 2

who is educational underachievement now mailnly focused on

Answer 2

the main problem today with underachievement is with boys, although by 2011 boys were starting to catch up with girls and sometimes outperforming them

Question 3

state 4 problems remain for girls in educational achievement

Answer 3

-too much attention ob boys underachievement
-social class is the most significant factor - girls likely to pick different subjects from b, influencing career choices
-g likely to slip between gcse and a level= g likely to do worse at a levels compared to boys with the same gcse grades
-girls still less likely to achieve similar success as men with similar qualifications
-

Question 4

state the impact of feminism on girls educational achievement

Answer 4

feminist movement- due to success in improving womens rights and opportunities through changes in the law, feminists have raised expectations for women and increased self esteem
feminist have change the self image of women and career aspirations of women
such chmages have been seen in the media - McRobbie

Question 5

what did McRobbie find

Answer 5

McRobbie (feminist) studied girls magazines in the 1970s and found that the focus was on the importance of marriage and not being left on the shelf
now= contain images of assertive, independent women

Question 6

changes in the family that affects girls educational achievement

Answer 6

major changes in the family from the 1970s=
increase in divorce
increase in cohabitation and decrease in first marriage along with an increase in lone-parent families
therefore more women have had to take on the “breadwinner” role- creating a new adult role model for girls- the financially independent woman

Question 7

changes in women’s employment

Answer 7

1970 equal pay act
1975 sex discrimination at work illegal
increase in womens employment from 1971-2013 is significant (53-67%)

Question 8

girls changing ambitions

Answer 8

girls are now more focused on having a career

Question 9

what did sue sharpe fine

Answer 9

sue sharpe (76, 94) found through interviews how career aspirations of young girls has dramatically changed from 70s to focus on being on the family to the 90s where focus was on career

Question 10

what did Beck and Beck Gernsheim find

Answer 10

Beck and Beck Gernsheim found (01) found the link between chnages in the trend of individuality in modern society where independence is values more. a career has now become a part of a women life project as it promises recognition and economic sufficiency

Question 11

evaluate the impact of feminism

Answer 11

the glass ceiling still exists- invisible barrier as to what women can achieve

Question 12

evaluate changes in the family as a factor influencing girls educational achievement

Answer 12

nuclear families still most common type
woeking class families- women not seen as “breadwinners” if they’re earnin g less than fathers
women still strive for breadwinner role even if not divorced
single parent families- some men take on the parent role

Question 13

evaluate changes in womens employment as an impact on girls educational achievement

Answer 13

there are still inequalities in jobs- eg sports- women typically earn less than men

Question 14

evaluate girls changing ambitions as a factor of girls educational success

Answer 14

not every woman has the same ambition

Question 15

summarise equal opportunities polocy

Answer 15

feminists ideas have had a major impact on the education system. policymakers are much more aware of gender issues and teachers are more sensitive on the need to avoid stereotyping. the belief in gender equality of opportunities is now a part of mainstream thinking and influences educational policies

Question 16

Boaler (98) thoughts on equal opportunities policies

Answer 16

Boaler believes that the impact of equal opportunity policies is a key reason for the changes in girls achievement. he believes many barriers have been removed and now schooled are more meritocratic so that girls who work hard generally achieve more than boys who don’t work as hard

Question 17

evaluate the effect of policies such as GIST and WISE

Answer 17

gist (girls into science and technology) and wise (women into science and engineering) encourage girls to pursue careers into non-traditional female ones.

female scientists have visited schools acting as role models and efforts have been made to raise science teachers awareness of gender issues

non-sexist career advice has been provided and more learning materials in science reflecting girls interest have been developed

Question 18

evaluate the introduction of the national curriculum (equal opportunities act)

Answer 18

the introduction of the national curriculum (98) removed one source of gender inequality by making girls and boys study mostly the same subjects, which was not the case previously

Question 19

summarise GCSE and coursework as a factor explaining the differences in gender achievement

Answer 19

some sociologists argue the way pupils are assessed favours girls and disadvantages boys
they believe the introduction of coursework (87) is a reason why girls do better as coursework requires students to be organised, have better language skills and are continuous which are qualities more girls have than boys.
sociologists may argue that these characteristics and skills are a result of early gender socialisation in the family- girls are encouraged to be neat and tidy which helps girls to have better achievement

Question 20

evaluate GCSE and coursework as a factor explaining the differences in gender achievement

Answer 20

Elwood (05) argues that coursework has little influence so is unlikely to be the only cause of gender gap because exams have much more influence than coursework on final grades

Question 21

what did Stephen Gorard (05) find about coursework and GCSEs as a factor influencing the gender gap in achievement

Answer 21

Stephen Gorard found an increase in gender achievement from 75-89 when GCSEs were introduced, bringing with it coursework as a major part of all subjects
Goraed concludes that the gender gap in achievement is a “product of the changed system of assessment rather than any more general failing boys”

Question 22

what did Eirene Mitsos and Ken Browne (98) think about GCSE and coursework as an influence on gender achievement

Answer 22

Eirene Mitsos and Ken Browne support Gorards view and conclude that girls are more successful in coursework because they are generally more consistent and better organised than boys.
Girls:
-spend more time on their work
-take more care with the way it’s presented
-are better at meeting deadlines
-bring the right equipment and materials to do well

these factors have helped girls to benefit from the introduction of coursework in GCSE, as and a level. along with GCSE has come the greater use of oral exams. this is said to also benefit girls because of their generally better developed language skills

Question 23

explain positive role models as a factor in girls educational achievement

Answer 23

increase in the proportion of female heads and teachers.

these women in senior positions may act as role models for girls, showing them women can achieve positions of importance and giving them non-traditional goals to aim for

teachers are important role models for girls as to become a teacher the individual must undertake a lengthy and successful education herself

Question 24

summarise teacher attention as a factor towards educational achievement

Answer 24

teacher attention with boys and girls differs. boys often receive more attention due to being seen as trouble makers” but as a result are often punished more harshly and felt picked on by teachers who had lower expectations of them

different communication styles;
boys often dominate in class discussions, therefore, leading teachers to view them as disruptive

whereas girls prefer group work which is more cooperative and involves turn-taking and not the hostile interruptions of boys speech

may explain why teachers react more positively to girls, whom they see as cooperative, than to boys whom they see as potentially disruptive. this may lead to a self-fulfilling prophecy in which successful interactions with teachers promotes girls self esteem and raise their achievement

Question 25

Jane and Peter French (93) found on teacher attention as a factor in educational achievement

Answer 25

Jane and Peter French analysed classroom interaction. they found that boys received more interaction because they attracted more reprimands

Question 26

Becky and Francis found on teacher attention on educational achievement

Answer 26

Becky and Francis (01) found that while boys receive more attention they are often disciplined more harshly and felt picked on by teachers, who tended to have lower expectations for them

Question 27

Swann (98) found teacher attention as a factor on educational achievement

Answer 27

Swann found gender differences in communication styles. boys dominate in whole-class discussions. whereas girls prefer paired and group work which involves turn-taking and is seen as more cooperative