External factors and gender differences

Question 1

impact of feminism and how it caused rapid increase in girls achievement?

What else did this increase?

How does Mcrobbie show these traditional changes?

What else did these changes positively affect?

Answer 1

• feminist movement increased womens rights and challenges their traditional roles of education.
• although feminist argue we have not had enough success, theres still a considerable imorovement in rights through law change.
• also increased womens expectations and self esteem
• she shows how magazines of women in the 1970s emphasised importance of getting married and depending on a husband whereas now contain images of independent and bold women.
• These changes also affect self image and courage for careers and family in a good way.

Question 2

Changes in the family and how it caused rapid increase in girls achievement?

Some examples?

Answer 2

• Since the 1970s, there has been an increase in divorce rate, cohabitation, lone parents, smaller families and a decrease in marriage rate.
• these changes affects girls attitudes towards education
• for example, female headed lone parent families create a independent and financially stable role model for girls
• another example, decrease in marriages and increase in divorce teaches girls relying on husband is unwise and so they should think on getting good qualifications that lead to a good paying job.

Question 3

Changes in womens employement and how it caused rapid increase in girls achievement?

How has this encouraged girls to put in the effort and achieve higher?

Answer 3

• the 1970 equal pay act makes it illegal to pay women less then men for work of same value.
• the 1975 sex discrimination act makes it illegal for any for of discrimination at work.
• since 1975, the gender pay gap has halved from 30% to 15%
  -the proportionof women employement has increase from 53 % in 1971 to 67% in 2013. This is because of the growth of flexible part time hours which have offered opportuinities for women
• women are now more often able to break through obstacles that block them from pursuing the high level professional jobs.
• Its enouraged girls to see their future in terms of paid labour rather then housewives.

Question 4

Girls changing ambitions and how it caused rapid increase in girls achievement?

Answer 4

• Sharpe (a sociologist) show how girls ambitions have changed over time, in the 1970s, marriage and kids were the main priority but by the 1990s girls prioritised careers and financial independence instead.
• o,connor (a sociologist) and his study found 14 - 17 year old girls found marriage and kids to not be their main future plan.
• Beck and Beck (sociologists) and they link this to individualisation where independence is more valued then in past and careers are more important to women as it = recognition and financial stability. Girls now understand that to get these things they need a good education.
  Fuller, (a sociologist) girls make education as apart of their own identity as the believe they are in charge of their own future. They believe education is meritocratic and that their aspirations need educational qualifications whereas in the 1970s they didnt need them so girls wouldnt aim to achieve high.

Question 5

How does class and gender have links to achievements?

Answer 5

• depending on class, there are differences in girls on how ambitious they are.
• w/c girls still have that stereotypical female ambitions such as marriage and traditional low paid womens work.
• Reay (a sociologist) says this reflects the reality of girls class position. Their limited aspirations reflect the limited job opportuinities they percieve to have available to them.
• Biggart ( a sociologist) found that w/c women hold a unsecured position in the labour market and so see motherhood as easiest option for future. This means they see less point and devalue education.