gender differences Flashcards
gender gap in achievement - starting school ao2
teacher assessments showed that girls were out performing boys in literacy, language and maths
gender gap in achievement - key stage 5 ao2
the gap at A level is much narrower that at GCSE but girls do still outperform boys
external factors (4)
feminism
changes in the family
changes in women’s employment
changes in girl’s ambitions
external factors - feminism
the feminist movement has improved the rights of women as well as raising expectations and self-esteem/ motivation.
women were no longer bound to the mother/ housewife role
external factors - feminism ao3
traditional gender roles in regards to motherhood still exist
external factors - changes in the family
major changes include: increase in divorce, increase in number of lone-parent families
increase in divorce may suggest to gils that its unwise to rely on a husband to be their provider, so seek well-paying jobs and qualifications
external factors - changes in women’s employment
include: equal pay act
these changes have encouraged girls to see their future as more than housewives and mothers but having a great career and financial independence
aspirations to get these jobs = do well in education
external factors - changing girls ambitions
sue Sharpe - girls are more likely to see their future as an independent t woman with a career than dependent on their husband
aim for a career that would enable them to support themselves
external factors ao3
there are class differences in how far girls ambitions have changed
some Wc girls continue to have gender-stereotyped aspirations for marriage
internal factors(6)
equal opportunities
role models
GCSe and coursework
teacher attention
challenging stereotypes
league tables/ selection
internal factors - equal opportunities
GIST (girls into science and technology)
WISE (some into science and engineering)
encourage women to get involved in STEM subjects
national curriculum 1998 - boys and girls study the same subjects
Boaler - impact of equal opportunities are. key reason for changes in girls achievement
internal factors - role models
increase in female teachers and heads
act as role models
showing women can achieve important positions
by seeing teachers as role models the individual understands they must undertake a successful education to have successful careers
internal factors - coursework and GCSE
assessments favour girls and disadvantage boys
Gorard - the gap in achievement increased when GCSE and coursework was introduced
mitos and Browne - believed girl soo better than boys in coursework because they are more conscientious and organised
internal factors - GCSE and coursework AO3
Elwood - although coursework has some influence it is unlikely to be the only cause of the gender gap because exams have more influence over final grades
internal factors - teacher attention
Jane and Peter French - boys get more attention as they attract more reprimands
Francis - boys got more attention but were disciplined more harshly and has less expectation of them
Swann - girls speech involves turn taking, boys involves hostile interruptions
teachers respond more positively with girls as they see them as more cooperative than disruptive boys = promotes girl self-esteem = self-fulfilling prophecy
internal factors - selection and league tables
marketisation policies have led to competition between schools
schools see girls as desirable as they achieve better exam results and boys unattractive because they suffer from behavioural difficulties and are 4x more likely to be excluded
so girls get recruited to better schools = receive better educations = achieve more
internal factors - changing stereotypes
the removal of gender stereotypes from textbooks and reading schemes has removed a barrier to girls’ achievement
research from 1980s - books portrayed woman as housewives and mothers , scared of science and in maths books boys were inventive
Weiner - teachers challenge stereotypes
and in general sexist image shave been removed from learning materials = helped raised girls achievement by presenting them with more positive images of what women can do
internal factors AO3 - liberal feminists
celebrate the progress that has been made for girls but believe there’s stilll work to be done
internal factors AO3 - radial feminists
recognise girls are achieving more but they emphasis that its in spite of the patriarchal nature lot the education system rather than due to major changes in education
they use this as evidence for patriarchy in education:
1/3 of 16-18yr olds experienced unwanted touching in school
girls identity and achievement - symbolic capital
feminist Archer
the status, recognition and sense of worth that we are able to obtain from others
by performing their WC female identities girls Gaines SC - however this bought them into conflict with the school = preventing educational capital
strategies girls followed to create a valued sense of self:
hyper-heterosexual feminine identity
having a boyfriend
being ‘loud’
girls identity and achievement -hyper- heterosexual feminine identities
Archer
girls spent time and money constructing ‘glamourous’ identities
those that did = got status but got into conflict with school for wrong appearance (jewellery etc)
led to school defining them as ‘not one of us’ and incapable of educational success
Bourdieu calls this ‘symbolic capital’ - they harm done by denying symbolic capital
girls identity and achievement - boyfriends
Brough symbolic capital
got in the way of schoolwork and lowered expectations - lost interest in going to uni and studying ‘masculine’ subjects and instead wanting to settle down and have kids
e.g having to drop out of school because they’re pregnant
girls identity and achievement - being loud
questioned teachers authority
failed to conform to schools stereotype of ideal female pupil
brought conflict with the school a they saw them as aggressive
girls identity and achievement - WCs dilemma
either gain symbolic capital or educational capital
Archer argues WC female identities and educational capital conflict with each other. WC girls investments into identities is a major cause of underachievement
girls identity and achievement - ‘successful’ WC girls
Evans
girls wanted to go to university to increase their earning power, not for themselves but to help their families
cost and fear of debt also determined whether they went to uni or not
boys and achievement - 5 factors effecting boys achievement
boys and literacy
globalisation and the decline in traditional men’s jobs
feminisation of education
shortage of male primary school teachers
laddish subcultures
factors effecting boys achievement - globalisation and the decline of traditional mens jobs
decline in heavy industries as the result of globalisation of the economy
these sectors mainly employed men
Mitsos and Browne - this decline has led to a identity crisis for men
boys now have little prospect of getting a proper job = undermines their motivation and give up trying to get qualifications
factors effecting boys achievement - boys and literacy
the gender gap is mainly the result of boys poor literacy skills
parents spend less time reading to sons, and it usually the mothers that do so reading becomes seen as a feminine activity
boys leisure activities (football) do little to develop language and communication skills
girls bedroom culture of staying in = does develop these skills
factors effecting boys achievement - globalisation and the decline of traditional mens jobs AO3
the decline has largely been in manual WC jobs that require few qualifications so its unlikely that the disappearance of the jobs would have much impact on boy’s motivation to gain qualifications
factors effecting boys achievement - feminisation of education
Sewell - boys fall behind because education is ‘feminised’
schools do not nurture masculine traits such as competitiveness but celebrate ‘feminine’ qualities of attentiveness
coursework is a major cause of failure - some should be replaced with final exams and there should be a greater emphasis on outdoor adventure
factors effecting boys achievement - shortage of male primary school teachers
there’s a lack of role models at home and at school
only 14% of primary school teachers are male
this is because the culture of primary school has become feminised because its staffed by female teachers - whoa re unable to control boys’ behaviour
male teachers are better able to impose the strict discipline boys need
factors effecting boys achievement - shortage of male primary school teachers AO3
Read studied the type of language teacher use:
disciplinarian discourse - explicit and visible
liberal discourse - implicit and invisible
found: most teachers favoured a disciplinarian discourse of control disproves the claim that school is feminised
and female teachers were just as likely to use this discourse as males
factors effecting boys achievement - laddish subcultures
Francis
boys were more concerned than girls about being labelled by peers as swots because this label is more of a threat to their masculinity
in WC culture masculinity = tough, manual work
a so they tend to reject school work to avoid ridicule
factors affecting boys achievement AO3
boys today are achieving far more than they did in the past
similarities in boys and girls achievements are greater than the differences
there are greater issues than gender - the class gap in achievement at GCSE is 3 x greater than the gender gap
gender and subject choice - AS and A levels AO2
big gender differences in entries for A level subjects - boys opting for maths and physics and girls choosing English and sociology
- questions the effectiveness OF GIST AND WISE policies
gender subject choice - explanations for the differences
gender role socialisation
gendered subject image
gender identity and peer pressure
gendered career opportunities
Gernder subject choice - gender role socialisation
the process of learning the behaviour expected of boys and girls
from early ages they’re dressed differently, given different toys and take part in different activities
Murphy and Elwood - boys and girls develop different tastes in reading - boys read hobby books girls read story books
explains why boys prefer science subjects and girls English
gender subject choice - gendered subject image
gender image of a subject affects who will choose it
Kelly - science is seen as a boys subject beceause science teachers are more likely to be men
Colley - computer studies is seen as masculine because it involves working with machines - part of male gender domain
pupils in same-sex schools make les traditional subject choices - girls in girls schools more likely to take maths and science A levels - boys more likely to take English
gender subject choice - gender identity and peer pressure
choice can be influenced by peer pressure - boys and girls apply pressure the they disapprove of choice - boys tend to opt out of dance as they fall outs their gender domain
Dewar - male students call girls lesbian if they appear interested in sport
gender subject choice - gendered career
employment is gendered jobs tend to be sex typed as mens or womens
womens jobs involve similar work to that performed by housewives
sex-typing affects boys and girls ideas of what kind of jobs are acceptable - if boys get the message that nursery nurses are female they will be less likely to opt for a course in childcare
pupils sexual and gender identities - 6 ways in which pupils experience in school construct identities
double standards
verbal abuse
the Male gaze
male peer groups
female peer groups
teachers and discipline
pupils sexual and gender identities - double standards
double standard of sexual morality - boys boast about their sexual exploits but call a girl a ‘slag’
feminists see these standards as an example pf patriarchal ideology that justifies Male power and devalues women
seen as a form of social control that reinforces gender inequality
pupils sexual and gender identities - verbal abuse
boys use name calling to put girls down if they behave or dress in certain ways
Paechter - name calling shapes gender identity and maintains male power
the use of labels such as gay and Lessie are ways in which pupils police sexual identities
pupils sexual and gender identities - the male gaze
visual aspect in the way pupils control each other’s identity
male pupils look girls up and down seeing them as sexual objects and making judgements
Mac and Ghaill see it as a form of surveillance through which male dominance is reinforced and femininity devalued
pupils sexual and gender identities - male peer groups
use verbal abuse to reinforce their masculinity
Epstein and Willis’ study show that boys in a anti-school subcultures often cause boys who want to do well at school of being gay
pupils sexual and gender identities - female peer groups
WC girls gain symbolic capital from their female peers by performing a hyper-heterosexual female identity
Ringrose’s study showed being popular was crucial to girl’s identity
girls made transition to friendship to dating culture they faced tension between:
an idealised feminine identity and a sexualised identity
they have to balance between these 2 identities to avoid the risk of slut shaming or ‘frigid’ shaming by the girls
pupils sexual and gender identities - teachers and discipline
teachers also play a role in reinforcing dominant definitions of gender identity
Haywood and Mac an Ghaill found that male teachers told boys off for behaving like girls
teachers tended to ignore boys’ verbal abuse to girls and even blame girls for attracting it
