Gender Differnces In Education

Question 1

The gender pay gap in achievement

Answer 1

Official statistics provide evidence of differences in the achievements of girls and boys at several important stages of their education:
On starting school - shows at the end of year one girls are ahead of boys and also better at concentrating
At key stage 1 to 3 - girls do consistently better than boys, especially at English.
At GCSE - shows the gender gap stands at around 10 percentage points
At AS and A level- girls are more likely to sit, pass and get hugger grades than boys although the gap is much narrower compared to GCSE
On vocational courses - a larger proportion of girls achieve distinctions in every subject

Question 2

The gender gap in achievement today

Answer 2

Although results for both sexes gave improved at all levels over the years, the girls rate of improvement has been more rapid and a significant gap has opened up, particularly at GCSE

Question 3

External factors and gender differences in achievement

Answer 3

Many sociologists argue that gender differences in achievement and especially the more rapid improvement in girls results, can be best explained by changes that have occurred in factors outside the such, such as the impact of feminism, changes in women’s employment, and girls changing perceptions and ambitions.
These changes are affecting girls attitudes towards education in a number of ways.

Question 4

External factors and gender differences In achievement- the impact of feminism

Answer 4

Feminism is a social movement that strives for equal rights for women in all areas of life. Since the 1960s, the feminist movement has challenged the traditional stereotype of a women’s role as solely that of mother and housewife in a patriarchal nuclear family and inferior to men outside the home, work, education and the law.
- although feminists argue that we have not yet achieved full equality between the sexes, the feminist movement has has considerable success in improving women’s rights and opportunities through change in the law. Feminism has raise women’s expectations and self esteem.

Question 5

External factors - the impact of feminism- the changes

Answer 5

These changes are partly reflected in media images and messages. A study comes from mcrobbies (1994) study of girls magazines. In the 1970s, they emphasised the importance of getting married and not being ‘left on the shelf’, whereas nowadays, they contain images of assertive, independent women.
- the changes encouraged by feminism may affect girls self image and ambitions with regard to the family and careers.

Question 6

External factors and gender differences in achievement - changes in the family

Answer 6

There have been major changes in the family since the 1979s these include:
- and increase in the divorce rate
- and increase in cohabitation and a decrease in the number of first marriages
- an increase in the number of lone parent families
- smaller families
These are affecting girls attitudes towards education in a number of ways. E.g, increases Numbers if female headed lone parent families may mean more women need to take on a breadwinner role. This in turn creates a new adult role model for Girls - the financial independent women. To achieve this independence, women need well paid jobs and therefore good qualifications.
Likewise, increases in the divorce rate may suggest to girls that it is unwise to rely on a husband or be their provider again, this may encourage girls to gain their own qualifications and to make a living

Question 7

External factors and gender differences in achievement- changes in women’s employment

Answer 7

There have been important changes in women’s employment in recent decades such as:
- the 1970 equal pay act makes it illegal to pay women less than men for work of equal value, and the 1975 sex discrimination act outlaws discrimination at work
- since 1975, the pay gap between men and women has halved from 30% to 15%
- employment of women has risen from 53% in 1971 to 67% in 2013
These statistics mean that women are seeing their future in terms of paid work rather than as housewives

Question 8

External factors and gender differences in achievement - girls changing ambitions

Answer 8

The views changing in family and employment are producing hangers in girls ambitions
- for example, sue shares interviews with girls in the 1970s and 1990s show a major shift in the way girls see the future.
In 1974 girls had low aspirations
- they believe educational success was unfeminine and unattractive
- they prioritised love, marriage, children, husbands etc
By the 1990s girls ambitions had changed
-they prioritised careers and being able to support themselves
- they were more likely to see themselves as independent women

Question 9

Girls changing ambitions study

Answer 9

O’connors study of 14-17 year olds found that marriage and children were not a major part if their life plans.
Beck and beck gernsheim link this teen towards individualism in modern society, where independence is valued much more strongly than in the past.
In order to achieve independence and send sufficiency, many girls now recognised that they need a good education in Carol fullers study, educational success was a central aspect of their identity and they saw themselves as creators of their own future,

Question 10

Class gender and ambitions

Answer 10

There are class differences in how far girls ambitions have changed some working class girls continue to have gender stereotyped aspirations for marriage and children and expect to go into traditional low paid women’s work.
Diane reay argues, thus reflect the reality of the girls class position. Their limited aspirations reflect the limited job opportunities they perceive as being available to them.

Question 11

Internal factors and gender differences in achievement

Answer 11

Factors within the education system itself are also important. These include equal opportunities policies, positive role models in schools, GCSE coursework, teacher attention and classroom interaction, challenging stereotypes in the curriculum, and selection and league tables

Question 12

Internal differences and gender differences in achievement - equal opportunities policies

Answer 12

Die to feminism policy makers are now much more aware of gender issues and teachers are more sensitive to the need to avoid stereotyping. The belief that boys and girls are entitled to the same opportunities is nie part if mainstream thinking and it influences educational policies.
Policies such as GIST (girls into science and technology) and WISE (women into science and engineering) encourages girls to pursue careers in these non traditional areas. The introduction of the national curriculum in 1988 made girls and boys study mostly the same subjects, which was not the case previously
Jo boaler sees the impact of equal opportunities policies as a key reason for the change in girls achievement. Schooling has become more meritocratic, so girls who generally work harder, achieve more

Question 13

Internal factors and gender differences in achievement - positive role models in schools

Answer 13

There has been an increase un the proportion of female teachers and heads. These women’s in senior positions may act as role models for girls, showing them women cab achieve positions of improbable and giving them non traditional goals to aim for.
Women teachers are likely to be particularly important role models for girls as far as girls educational achievement is concerned since, to become a teacher, the individual must undertake a lengthy and successful educational herself

Question 14

Internal factors and gender differences in achievement - GCSE and coursework

Answer 14

Some sociologists argue that changes in the way pupils are assessed have favoured girls and disadvantaged boys. E.g Stephan Gorard found that the gender gap in achievement was fairly constant from 1975 until 1989, when it increases sharply. This was the year in whip ich GCSE was introduced, bringing with it coursework as a major part of nearly all subjects. Gorard concludes that the gender gap in achievement is a ‘product of the changed system so assessment rather than any more general failing of boys’

Eirene mitosis and Ken Browne support this view. They conclude that girls are more successful in coursework because they are more conscientious and better organised than boys as girls spend more time on their work, take more care on the way it is presented and are better at meeting deadlines.
They argue that these factors have helped girls to benefit from the introduction of coursework in GCSE, AS and A levels.

Sociologists argue that these characteristics and skills are the result of early gender role socialisation in the family. For example, girls are more likely to be encouraged to be nest tidy and patient. These qualities become an advantage in today’s assessment system, helping girls achieve greater success than boys.

Question 15

Internal factors and gender differences in achievement- teacher attention

Answer 15

The way teachers interact with boys and girls differs. Jane and Peter French analysed classroom interaction, they found that boys get more attention because they attract more reprimands. Becky francis found that while boys got more attention, they were disciplined more harshly by teachers who tended to have lower expectations for them.
Swann also found gender differences in communication styles. Boys dominate in whole class discussions, whereas girls prefer pair work and group work and are better at listening and cooperating. When working in groups girls speech involves turn Yakima and not the hostile interruptions that often characterised boys speech.
This may explain why teachers respond more positively to girls. This may lead to a self fulfilling prophecy in which successful interactions with teachers promote girls self esteem and raise their achievement levels

Question 16

Internal factors and gender differences in achievement - challenging stereotypes in the curriculum

Answer 16

• some sociologists argue the removal of stereotypes from textbooks, reading schemes and other learning materials has removed a barrier to girls achievement
• research in the 1970s and 80s found reading schemes portrayed women as mainly as housewives and mothers
• physic books shows them as frightened by science and maths depicted boys as more inventive
• gabby wiener argues since 1980s teachers have challenged such stereotypes this helped to raise girls achievement by presenting women positively

Question 17

Internal factors and gender differences in achievement- selection and League tables

Answer 17

Marketisation policies have created a more competitive climate in which schools see girls as desirable recruits because they achieve better exam results.
David Jackson notes that the introduction of exam league tables have Improved opportunities for girls: high achieving girls are attractive to schools, whereas low achieving boys are not. This tends to create self fulfilling prophecy- because girls are more likely to be recruited by good schools, they are more likely to do well.
Roger slee argues that boys are less attractive to schools because they are more likely to suffer from behavioural difficulties and are four times more likely to be excluded. As a result, boys may be seen as ‘liability students’ - obstacles to the school improving its league table scores.

Question 18

Views of girls achievement - liberal feminists

Answer 18

While there gave clearly been changes in gender and educational achievement, sociologists differ in their interpretation of the importance of these changes
Liberal feminists- celebrate the progress made so far in improving achievement. They believe that further progress will be made by the continuing development of equal opportunities policies, encouraging positive role models and overcooking sexist attitudes and stereotypes
- this is similar if the functionalist view that education is a meritocracy where all individuals, regardless of gender ethnicity or class are given equal opportunity to achieve

Question 19

Two views of girls achievement- radical feminists

Answer 19

Take a more cortical view, while they recognise that girls are achieving more, they emphasise that the system remains patriarchal (male dominated) and conveys the clear message that it is still a man’s works. E.g:
- sexual harassment of girls continues at schools
- education still limits girls subjects choices and career options
- although there are now more female head teachers, male teachers are still more likely to become heads of secondary schools
- women are underrepresented in many areas of the curriculum. E.g, their contribution to history is largely ignored. Wiener describes the Serie at school history curriculum as a ‘women free zone’

Question 20

Identity, class and girls achievement

Answer 20

Whilst girls on average now achieve more highly than in the past, thus does not mean that all girls are successful. In particular, there are social class differences in girls achievement, for example, in 2013, only 40:6% of girls from poorer families achieved five A*-C GCSES, whereas over two thirds of those not on free school meals did so.

Question 21

Symbolic capital

Answer 21

According to feminist such as archer et al, one reason for these differences is the conflict between working class girls feminine identities and the values and ethos of the school. In her study of working class girls, archer uses the concept of ‘symbolic capital’ to understand this conflict, symbolic capital refers to the stays, recognition and sense of worth that we are able to obtain from others
Archer found that by performing their working class feminine identities, the girls gained symbolic from their peers. However, this brought them into conflict with school, preventing them from acquiring educational capital and economic capital
Archer identifies several strategies that the girls followed for creating a blues sense of self. These include adopting a hyper heterosexual feminine identity, having a boyfriend and being ‘loud’

Question 22

Hyper heterosexual feminine identities

Answer 22

Many of the girls invested considerable time, effort and money in constructing ‘desirable’ and ‘glamorous’ hyper heterosexual feminine identities. E.g, one girl spent all of her allowance she earned on her appearance.
The girls performance of this feminine identity brought status from their female peer group and avoided them being ridiculed or called a ‘tramp’ for wearing the wrong brand.
However, it also bought them into conflict with school. For example, they were often punished for having the wrong appearance: too much jewellery, the wring clothing or makeup and so on. Teachers saw the girls preoccupation with appearance as a distraction that prevented them engaging with education.

Question 23

What did the hyper heterosexual feminine identities lead to

Answer 23

This led to the school ‘othering’ the girls - defining them as ‘not one of us’, incapable of education success and thus less worthy of respect. Bourdieu describes this process as symbolic violence. Symbolic violence is the harm done by defining someone’s symbolic capital, e.g by defining their culture as worthless
According to archer, from the schools point of view, the ‘ideal female pupil’ identity is a de sexualised and middle class of that excluded many working class girls.

Question 24

Boyfriends

Answer 24

While having boyfriends brought symbolic capital, it got in the way of schoolwork and lowered girls aspirations. This included losing interest in going to university, in studying ‘masculine’ subjects such as science or in gaining a professional career. Instead these girls aspired to ‘settle down’, have children and work locally in working class feminine jobs such as childcare. One girl had to drop out after school after becoming pregnant.

Question 25

Being ‘loud’

Answer 25

Some working class girls adopted ‘loud’ feminine identities that often led them to be outspoken, independent and assertive, for example questioning teachers authority. This failed to conform to the schools stereotype of the ideal female pupil as passive and submissive to authority and brought conflict with teachers, who interpreted their behaviour as aggressive rather than assertive

Question 26

Working class girls dilemma

Answer 26

Working class girls are faced with a dilemma
- either gaining symbolic capital - from their peers by confirming to a hyper sexual feminine identity
- or gaining educational capital - by rejecting their working class Iceland conforming to the schools middle class notions of a respectable, ideal, female pupil.

Some girls tried to cope with this dilemma by defining themselves as ‘good underneath’ (despisers the teachers negative views of them). This ‘good underneath’ self image reflects the Giles struggle to achieve a sense oder self worth within an education system that devalues their working class feminine identities.
Archer argues that working class feminine identities and educational success conflict with one another. Working class Girls investments in their feminine identities are a major cause of their underachievement

Question 27

The ‘successful’ working class girls

Answer 27

Althing has working class girls in general are likely to underachieve, some do success and go on to higher education. However, even they may be at a disadvantage by their gender and class identities, as evans shows in her study of 21 working class sixth form girls.
- she found that the girls wanted to go to university to increase their earning power. However, this was mir for themselves, but to help their families. The girls motivation reflected their working class feminine identities.

Question 28

The ‘successful’ working class girl economic problem

Answer 28

Economic necessity was a further reason for living at home. Cost and fear of getting into debt are major issues for many working class students in deciding which universities to apply to. However, while living at home made it more affordable, it also limited their choice of university and the market value of their degree.

Question 29

Boys and achievement

Answer 29

These include external factors such as boys poorer literacy skills and the decline of traditional men’s jobs, as well as internal factors, such as the feminisation of education, the shortage of male primary school teachers and ‘laddish’ subcultures.

Question 30

Boy and literacy

Answer 30

According to the DCDF (2007), the gender gap is mainly the result of boys poorer literacy and langue skills. One reason for this many be that parents spend less time reading to their sons. Another may be that it is mothers who do most of the reading to young children, who then come to see reading as a feminine activity
In addition, boys leisure pursuits, such a football, do little help to develop their language and communication skills. By contrast, girls tend to have a ‘bedroom culture’ centred on staying in and talking with friends.
Poor language and literacy skills are likely to affect boys performance across a wide range of subjects. In response to this problems the government has introduced a range if policies to Improve boys skills

Question 31

Globalisation and the decline of traditional men’s jobs

Answer 31

Since the 1980s, there has been a significant decline in the heavy industries such as engineering. This has been partly the result of the globalisation within manufacturing industry relocating to developing countries. Mitosis and Browne claim this loss of employment has led to an identity crisis for working class men. Many now believing that have no chance of getting a ‘proper job’. This undermines their motivation and self esteem and so they give up trying to get qualifications.

Question 32

Feminisation of education

Answer 32

Tony swell is reported as claiming that boys fall behind because education has become ‘feminised’. That is, schools do not nurture ‘masculine’ traits such as compete hess. and leadership. Instead, they celebrate qualities more closely associated with girls, such as methodical working and alternative in class.
Swell see coursework as a major cause of gender differences. Mitsos and Browne agree it suits girls and how they work, they are neat, meet deadlines and work consistently over time. Boys seem to prefer final exams where they can ‘cram’ information. We have recently seen coursework removed from GCSE exam which may well benefit boys.

Question 33

The shortage of male primary school teachers

Answer 33

The lack of male role models both at home and at school is said to be a cause of boys underachievement. E.g, large numbers of boys are being brought up in the 1.5 million female healed lone parent families in the uk. Only 14% of primary school teachers are male and according to yougov 2007, 39% of 8-11 year old boys have no lessons whatsoever with a male teacher. Yet most boys surveyed said that the presence of a male teacher made them behave better and 42% said it made them work harder.
Some commentators argue that this is because the culture of the primary school has become feminised as a result of being staffed by female teachers, who are unable to control boy’s behaviour. In this view, male teachers are better able to impose the strict discipline boys need in order to concentrate.

Question 34

‘Laddish subcultures’

Answer 34

Some sociologists argue that the growth of ‘laddish’ subcultures has contributed to buys underachievement. Debbie Epstein examined the way masculinity is constructed within school. She found that Woking class boys are likely to be Harassed, labelled as sissies and subjected to homophonic verbal abuse if they appear to be ‘swots’.
This supports francis 2001 finding that boys were more concerned than girls about being labelled by peers as swots because this label is more of a threat to their masculinity than it is to girls femininity.
This is because in working class culture, masculinity is equated with being tough and doing manual work. Non manual work, and by extension of school work is seen as effeminate and inferior. As a result working class boys tend to reject schoolwork to avoid being called ‘gay’
According to francis, laddish culture is becoming increasingly widespread. She argues that this is because girls move into traditional masculine areas such as careers, boys respond by ‘becoming increasingly laddish in their effort to construct themselves as non feminine’

Question 35

The moral panic about boys (feminism)

Answer 35

Critics feminism argue that policies to promote girls education are no longer needed. Now there is what some say a ‘moral panic’ about boys mainly because of a concern that working class boys will grow into a dangerous unemployable underclass that threatens the social stability. Ring rose says this caused a major change in social policy, which us now preoccupied with raising boys achievement. This policy shift has two negative effects:
1. It narrows equal opportunities policy down simply to ‘failing boys’, it ignited other problems of disadvantaged working class and ethnic minority pupils
2. It ignores the problems faced by girls in school. These include sexual harassment, bullying and self esteem issues and subject Choices.

Question 36

Gender, class and ethnicity

Answer 36

The performance of all sexes improved in recent years.
- there is a similarity of GCSE results between working class boys and working class girls - never more than 12% points
- pupils do the same gender but different causes receive widely different results - could be more than 44% points
- class is therefore a more important influence of results than gender
- the gender gal is much wider within some ethnicities such as AC as fuller and swell showed.

Question 37

Gender and subject choice

Answer 37

There continues to be a fairly traditional pattern of ‘boys’ subjects and ‘girls’ subjects. Boys still tend to opt for subjects such as maths and physics, while girls are more likely to choose modern language, for example.

Question 38

National curriculum options

Answer 38

Where there is a choice in the national curriculum, girls and bits choose differently.

Question 39

AS and A level

Answer 39

Gendered subject choices become more noticeable after 16, when students have more choice. E.g, there are big gender differences in entries for A level subjects with boys opting for maths and physics and girls choosing subjects such as sociology.

Question 40

Vocational courses

Answer 40

Prepare students for particular careers. Gender segregation is very noticeable feature of vocational training. E.g only one in 100 childcare apprentices is a boy

Question 41

What is Gender role and socialisation

Answer 41

Gender role socialisation is the process of learning the behaviour expected of males and females in society.
Early socialisation shapes children’s gender identity. As Norman notes, from and early age, boys and girls are dressed differently, given different toys and encouraged to take part in different activities

Question 42

Schools part in gender role socialisation

Answer 42

Schools also play an important part. Byrne shows that teachers encourage boys to be tough and show initiative and not be weak or behave like sissies. Girls on the other hand are expected to be quite, helpful, clean and tidy.
As a result of differences in socialisation, boys and girls develop different tastes in reading. Murphy and Elwood show these lead to different subject choices. Boys read Bobby books and information texts, while girls are more likely to read stories about people. Thus helps to explain why boys prefer science subjects and why girls prefer subject such as English.

Question 43

Gender domains

Answer 43

Browne and Ross argue that children’s beliefs about ‘gender domains’ are shaped by their early experiences and the expectations of adults. By gender domains they mean the tasks and activities that boys and girls see as male or female ‘territory’ and therefore as relevant to themselves. E.g mending a car is seen as falling within the male gender domain and looking after a sick child is not.
Children are more confident when engaging in tasks that they see as part of their own gender domain. E.g, when they are set the same mathematical task, girls are more confident in tackling it when it is presented as being about food and nutrition, whereas boys are more confident if it’s about cars.
In general, girls focus more on how people feel, whereas boys focus on how things are made and work. This helps to explain why girls choose humanities and arts subject, while boys choose science

Question 44

Gendered subject images

Answer 44

The gender image of a subject affects who will want to choose it. Sociologists have tried to explain why some subjects are seen as boys or girls subjects in the first place. E.g, Kelly argues that science is seen as a boys subject for several reasons:
- science teachers are more likely to be men
- the examples teachers use, and those in textbooks, often draw on boys rather than girls interests
- in science lessons, boys monopolise the apparatus and dominate the laboratory, acting as if it is ‘theirs’
Similarly colley notes that computer studies is seen as a mass unkind subject for two reasons
- it involves working with machines - part of the male domain
- the way it is taught off putting to females. Tasks tend to be abstract and teaching styles formal, with few opportunities for group work, which girls favour

Question 45

Single sex schooling

Answer 45

Interestingly, pupils who attend single sex schools tend to hold less stereotyped subject images and make less traditional subject choices. Analysing data on 13,000 individuals, Leonard found that, compared to pupils In mixed schools, girls in girls schools were more likely to take maths and science A levels, while boys were more likely to take English and languages.

Question 46

Gender identity and peer pressure

Answer 46

Subject choice cab be influenced by peer pressure. Other boys and girls may apply pressure to an individual if they disapprove or his or her options. E.g, boys tend to opt out of music and dance because such activities fall outside their gender domain and so are likely to attract a negative response from peers
Paechter found that because pupils see sport as mainly within the male gender domain, girls who are ‘sporty’ have to cope with an image that contradicts the conventional female stereotype. This may explain why girls are more likely to opt out of sport.

Question 47

Gender identity and peer pressure- the absence of peer pressure

Answer 47

By contrast, an absence of peer pressure from the opposite sex may explain why girls I’m single sex schools are more likely to choose traditional boy subjects. The absence of boys may mean there is less pressure on girls to conform to restructure stereotypes of what subjects that can study.

Question 48

Gendered career opportunities

Answer 48

An important reason for differences in subject choice is the fact that employment is highly gendered: jobs tend to be be sex typed as ‘men’s’ or ‘women’s’. Women’s jobs often involve work similar to that performed by housewives, such as childcare and nursing. Women are concerntrated in a narrow range of occupations. Over half of all women’s employment falls within only four categories: clerical, secretarial, personal services and occupations such as cleaning

Question 49

How does gendered career options affect boys and girls

Answer 49

This sex typing of occupations affects boys and girls about what kinds of jobs are possible or acceptable. This for example, if boys get the message that nursery nurses are female, they will be less likely to opt for a course in childcare.
This also helps to explain why vocational courses are much more gender specific than academic courses, since vocational studies are by definition more closely linked to students career plans.

Question 50

Gender vocational choice and class

Answer 50

There is a social class dimension to choice of vocational course. Working class pupils in particular may make decisions about vocational courses that are based on a traditional sense of gender identity. E.g most girls in fullers study had ambitions to go into hair or childcare this reflected their working class habitus - their sense of what is realistic expectation for ‘people like us’
These ambitions may arise out of work experience placements, which are often gendered and classed.

Question 51

Pupils sexual and gender identities

Answer 51

Bob Connell calls the ‘hegemonic masculinity’ - the dominance of heterosexual masculine identity and the subordination of female and gay identities

Question 52

Double standards

Answer 52

A double standard exists when we apply one set of moral standards to one group but a different set to another group. In the case of gender identity, sue lees identifies a double standard of sexual morality in which boys boast about their win sexual exploits, it call a girl a ‘slag’ is she doesn’t have a steady boyfriend or if she dresses and speaks in a certain way. Sexual conquest is approved of and gives status by male peers and ignored by male teachers, but ‘promiscuity’ among girls attracts negative labels
Feminist see these double standards as an example of a patriarchal ideology that justifies male power and devalues women. Double standards can be seen as a form of social control that reinforces gender inequality by keeping females subordinate to males

Question 53

Verbal abuse

Answer 53

What Connell calls ‘a rich vocabulary of abuse’ is one of the way in which dominate gender and sexual identities are reinforces. E.g, boys use name calling to put girls down if they behave or dress in certain ways. Lee found that boys called girls ‘slags’ if they appeared to be sexually available and ‘drags’ if they didn’t
Similarly, paechter sees name calling as helping ti shadow gender identity and maintain male power. The use of negative labels such as ‘gay’, ‘queer’ and ‘lezzie’ are ways in which pupils police each others sexual identities.
E.g, Parker found that boys were labelled gay simply for being friendly with girls or female teachers. Both lees and paechter note that these labels often bear no relation to pupils actual sexual behaviour. Their function is simply to reinforce gender norms and identities

Question 54

The male glaze

Answer 54

There is also visual aspect the way pupils control each others identifies. Mac and Ghaill refers to this as the ‘male glaze’: the way male pupils and teachers look girls up and down, seeing them as sexual objects and making judgements about their appearance.
Mac an Ghaill sees the male gaze as a form of surveillance through which dominate heterosexual masculinity is reinforced and femininity devalued. It is one of the way boys prove their masculinity to their friends and is often combined with constant telling and re telling of stories about sexual conquests. Boys who do not display their heterosexuality in this way run the risk of being labelled gay.

Question 55

Male peer groups

Answer 55

Male peer groups also use verbal abuse to reinforce their definitions of masculinity. E.g, as studies by Epstein and wills show, boys in anti school subcultures often accuse boys who want to do well at school of being gay and effeminate.
Similarly, Martin Mac an Ghaill study of Parnell school examines how peer groups reproduce a range of different class bases masculine gender identities. For example, the working class ‘macho lads’ were dismissive of other working class boys who worked hard and aspired to middle class careers, referring to them as the ‘dickhead’
By contrast middle class ‘real Englishmen’ projected an image of ‘effortless achievement’ of succeeding without trying.

Question 56

Female peer groups: policing identity

Answer 56

Archer shows how working class girls gain symbolic capital from their female peers by performing a hyper heterosexual feminine identity. This involves constructing a glamorous or ‘sexy’ Nike appearance using particular brands and styles. Female peers police this identity and girls risk making themselves unpopular and being called a ‘tramp’ if they fail or conform

Question 57

Female peer groups - ring rose study

Answer 57

A small scale study of 13 - 14 year olds working class girls peer groups in a south Wales school found that being popular was crucial to the girls identity. As the girls made a transition from a girls friendship culture into a heterosexual dating culture, they faces a tension between:
- an idealised feminine identity of showing loyalty to the female peer group, being non competitive and getting along with everybody in the friendship culture
- a sexualised identity that involved competing for boys in the dairying culture.

Carrie et al argue, while relationships with boys can confer symbolic capital, this is a high risk game. This is because girls are forced to perform a balancing act between these two identities:
- girls who are too competitive and think themselves better than their peers risk ‘slut shamming’ - being labelled as sluts and excluded from the friendship culture
- on the other hand, girls who donor compete for boyfriends my face ‘frigid shaming’ by the other girls.
Shaming is a social control device by which schools police, regulate and discipline each others identities.

Question 58

What’s a ‘boffin’ identity

Answer 58

Girls who want to be successful educationally may feel the need to conform to the schools notion of the ideal feminine pupil identity. As reay found, this involved the girls having to perform an asexual identity, presenting themselves as lacking any interest in boyfriends or popular fashion
As a result, they risk being given the identity of ‘boffin’ and excluded by other girls. However, as francis found, middle class female boffins may respond in kind by defining other, Woking class girls as ‘chavs’

Question 59

teachers and discipline

Answer 59

research shows that teachers also play a part in reinforcing dominant definitions of gender identity. haywood and Mac an Ghaill found that male teachers told boys off for ‘behaving like girls’ and teased them when they gained lower marks in tests than girls. teachers tended to ignore boys verbal abuse of girls and even blamed girls for attracting it.

askew and ross show how male teachers behaviour can subtly reinforce messages about gender. like reinforcing the idea that women cannot cope alone.