Gender Differences in Education - Why are Boys Underachieving? Flashcards
5 key reasons for underachievement of boys
Boys and literacy
Decline of men’s jobs
Feminisation of education
Shortage of male primary school teachers
Laddish subculture
What is the gender gap in achievement mainly the result of according to the DCSF?
Boys’ poor literacy and language skills
Why are boys worse at literacy and language skills than girls?
Because parents spend less time reading with their sons as it’s seen as a feminine activity
What culture has lead to girls having better literacy and language skills than boys?
The ‘bedroom culture’ which is based on staying in and talking with friends
Why has there been a signification decline in heavy industries since the 1980s?
Because of globalisation with manufacturing industry relocating to developing countries
What has led to an identity crisis for W/C men according to Mitos and Browne?
The loss of employment
What is the effect of boys believing there is no chance of them getting a ‘proper’ job?
Their motivation and self esteem becomes undermined and so they give up trying to secure qualifications
Why does it seem unlikely that the disappearance of jobs in heavy industries would have much impact on boys’ motivation to obtain qualifications?
Because these jobs have never required qualifications
What type of institutions are schools according to Sewell?
Feminine institutions
What don’t schools nurture according to Sewell?
As they are feminine institutions they don’t nurture masculine traits such as competitiveness and leadership, instead they celebrate qualities more associated with girls like attentiveness in the classroom
What does Sewell see as a major cause of gender differences?
Coursework
What percentage of primary school teachers are men according to the DFE?
16% in 2007
What percentage of boys said that male teachers made them work harder and behave better according to a YouGov poll?
42%
According to research carried out by Francis, what fraction of 7-8 year olds said having a male teacher made no difference to their work rate?
2/3
What did Epstein find about W/C men who worked at school?
They were labelled and subject to a great deal of abuse including homophobic comments
