gender differences in achievement

Question 1

evaluation for using official statistics to research gender gap in achievement

Answer 1

pros:
- easy access, free
- from the government, reliable
- quantitative, easy to analyse
- updated, shows change over time
cons:
- quantitative, less in depth = less valid
- only statistics, no cause and effect = less valid
- secondary data, less valid
- ignores other factors like age and ethnicity

Question 2

impact of feminism

Answer 2

• changed gender roles for girls
• led to financial independence for women
• equal pay act/sex discrimination act = woman legally have to be payed the same as men in the workplace
• affected girls’ self image/ambitions

Question 3

changes in family since 70s and their effects on girls

Answer 3

• increase in symmetrical families = equal role models, encourages hard work amongst girls
• increase in single parent families = positive male/female role model, encourages hard work amongst girls
• women marrying/starting families later = encourages girls to prioritise education more
• increase in divorce = shows girls they can be financially independent

Question 4

equal opportunities

Answer 4

• the education reform act has embodied the idea of equal opportunities by making girls and boys study the same subjects and making science compulsory
• coursework introduced
• national curriculum introduced

Question 5

mitsos and brown

Answer 5

introduction of coursework benefitted girls because they:
- spend more time on their work
- take more care with how it’s presented
- are better at meeting deadlines
bring the right equipment
- mature earlier than boys
- have longer attention span than boys
pros:
- girls have better opportunities than before
cons:
- boys do worse with coursework so unfair disadvantage
- outdated as coursework was later removed

Question 6

globalisation and decline in men’s jobs

Answer 6

• since 80s, there’s been a significant decline in heavy industries like iron and steel which have traditionally employed men
• mitsos and brown claim this has led to “identity crisis for men”
• boys believe there is little prospect of them getting a better job = lose motivation and self esteem so they give up

cons:
- too deterministic, assumes men will always give up when unmotivated

Question 7

feminisation

Answer 7

• sewell claims schools don’t nurture “masculine” traits like competitiveness
• it favours qualities more associated with girls like attentiveness in class