gender differences in achievement Flashcards
What are the 4 external factors affecting gender differences in achievement?
the impact of feminism
changes in the family structure
changes in women’s employment
girls’ changing ambitions
McRobbie
-the impact of feminism
GIRLS’ MAGAZINES
Before emphasised the importance of getting married but now more images on assertive and independent women
Sharpe’s interviews with girls
-changing girls’ ambitions
Change in priorities from love and marriage to careers becoming more of a priority
Believe in meritocracy and being creators of their own futures, supporting themselves
Reay
a criticism
W/C girls believe you can still be successful in traditional gender identity (being a mother) -> less effort put into educational success
Biggart
a criticism
W/C girls more likely to see that motherhood is the only viable option
What are the 6 internal factors affecting gender differences in achievement?
equal opportunities policies
positive role models
challenging stereotypes in the curriculum
GCSE and coursework
teacher attention
selection and league tables
What are some equal opportunities policies?
Policies such as GIST and WISE encourage girls to pursue careers in these non-traditional areas
National curriculum - girls+boys learn mostly the same subjects
Jo Boaler
Sees equal opportunities as increasing girls achievement and school’s meritocracy, and barriers are removed
Mitsos and Browne
girls spend more time on work, take care with how things are presented and better at meeting deadlines- better prepared for coursework
Elwood
criticises how girls are put at an advantage with coursework
Exams are more weighted than coursework yet gender gap still exists
Francis
-teacher attention
Boys receive more attention from teachers because act out more and so disciplined more harshly - teachers have low expectations -> labelling and self-fulfilling prophecy
Swann
-teacher attention
Boys dominate class discussion while girls prefer pair and group work and better at listening so teachers react to them positively seeing girls as cooperative but boys as disruptive -> labelling and self-fulfilling prophecy
Jackson
-selection and league tables
- links to self-fulfilling prophecy
Girls recruited to better schools, receive a better education and go on to achieving more highly
Slee
-selection and league tables
Boys less attractive to schools because more likely to suffer from behavioural difficulties and 4x more likely to be excluded - could damage the school’s reputation
-as a result boys may be seen as ‘liability students’- obstacles to the school improving its league table scores
-They give the score a ‘rough tough’ image that deter high achieving girls from applying
changes in the family structure
E.g. increasing divorce rates, lone-parent families, smaller families
Independence and women taking the role as the breadwinner
changes in women’s employment
Pay gap reduced from 30% to 15%
1970 Equal Pay Act and 1975 Sex Discrimination Act
Women see their future in terms of paid work > housework
Incentive to gain qualifications
positive role models
An increase in the proportion of female teachers and heads - show girls that they can aim for non-traditional roles
An important role because teachers must have had a successful education herself
challenging stereotypes in the curriculum
Removal of stereotypes but textbooks, reading schemes and other learning materials -portrayed women as housewives
Physics books: frightened of science and maths books: ‘boys are more inventive’
GCSE and coursework
Gender gap increased dramatically when GCSEs and coursework was introduced
selection and league tables
marketisation policies cause schools to see girls as more desirable because they achieve better exam results
liberal feminists view of girls achievement
-Celebrate the progress made so far and improving achievement and believe that further progress will be made by the continuing development of equal opportunities policies encouraging positive role models and overcoming sexist attitudes and stereotypes
-Similar to the functionalist view meritocracy where all individuals regardless of gender fitness all class are given an equal opportunity to achieve
radical feminists view of girls achievement
-take a more critical view and recognise that wild guys are achieving more. They emphasise that the system remains patriarchal and conveys the clear message that it is still a man’s world.
-e.g:
-Sexual harassment of girls continues at school
-Education still limits, subject choices and career options
-Although there are more female teachers male teachers are more likely to become heads of the secondary school
-women are under represented in many areas of the curriculum for example their contribution to history is largely ignored. Weiner describes the secondary school historic curriculum as a ‘woman-free zone. ‘
