GENDER-GENDER AND SUBJECT CHOICE-EXPLANATIONS OF GENDER DIFFERENCES IN SUBJECT CHOICE Flashcards
GENDER +SUBJECT CHOICE-WHAT IS THE PATTERN?
-traditional pattern of ‘girls’ subjects and ‘boys’ subjects,boys tend to do subjects like physics and maths and girls English
-the national curriculum gives pupils little freedom to choose or drop subjects till 16, however where choice is possible, boys and girls tend to follow different ‘gender routes’ and this is shown through A- levels and vocational courses
WHAT IS GENDER ROLE-SOCIALISATION?
-the process of learning the behaviour expected of males and females in society
1-GENDER ROLE SOCIALISATION-WHICH SOCIOLOGISTS TALK ABOUT THIS AND WHAT DO THEY SAY?
NORMAN- from an early age, boys and girls are dressed differently,given different toys and encouraged to take part in different activities
BRYNE- teachers encourage boys to be tough,show initiative and not be weak and girls are expected to be quiet, helpful,clean and tidy
MURPHY+ELWOOD- because of differences in socialisation boys + girls develop different tastes in reading which leads to different subject choices.Boys read hobby+ information texts whilst girls read about people
-helps to explain why boys prefer science subjects and girls prefer subjects like English
2-GENDER DOMAINS-WHAT ARE GENDER DOMAINS?
-tasks and activities that boys and girls see as male or female ‘territory’
2-GENDER DOMAINS- WHAT SOCIOLOGISTS TALK ABOUT THIS AND WHAT DO THEY SAY?
-BROWNE + ROSS- children’s beliefs about gender domains are shaped by their early experiences and the expectations of adults, children are more confident when engaging with tasks they see as part of their gender domains
-MURPHY- boys and girls pay attention to different details, even when talking about the same task, girls focus on how people feel whereas boys focus on how things work explaining why girls pick humanities and boys pick science
3-GENDERED SUBJECT IMAGES- SOME SUBJECTS ARE SEEN AS ‘BOY’ OR ‘GIRL’ SUBJECTS-WHAT DO KELLY + COLLEY SAY?
KELLY- science is seen as a boys subject as:
1- science teachers are more likely to be men
2-the examples teachers use and the ones shown in textbooks draw on boys’ interests rather than girls’
3-in science lessons boys monopolise the equipment and the laboratory
COLLEY-computer studies is seen as masculine because:
1- it involves working with machines(male gender domains)
2-the way it is taught is off putting to girls (few opportunities for group work which girls tend to favour)
4-SINGLE SEX SCHOOLING( CAN BE USED TO CRITICISE GENDER SUBJECT IMAGES)XWHAT DIES LEONARD SAY.
LEONARD- pupils who attend single sex schools tend to hold less stereotyped subject images and make less traditional subject choices. He found that compared to pupils in mixed schools girls in girls schools were more likely to study male dominated subjects like maths and science while boys in all boys schools were more likely to take English and languages
GENDER IDENTITY AND PEER PRESSURE-WHAT IS PEER PRESSURE IN THUS CONTEXT.
-boys and girls may apply pressure to an individual if they disapprove of his or her choice e.g boys tend to opt out of music and dance because such activities are outside their gender domains and so are likely to attract negative responses from peers
GENDER IDENTITY AND PEER PRESSURE- WGICH SOCIOLOGISTS TALK ABOUT THIS AND WHAT DO THEY SAY?
PAETCHER- found that b3cause pupils see sport as manly within the male gender domains, girls who are sporty have to cope with an image that contradicts the conventional female stereotype explaining why girls are more likely to opt outvof sports
DEWAR- found that male pupils would call girls lesbian or butch if they appeared interested in sports
GENDERED CAREER OPPORTUNITIES- HOW DO THEY REINFORCE SUBJECT CHOICES?
-employment is highly gendered: jobs tend to be sex-typed as ‘mens’ or’ women’s’
-women’s jobs tend to involve work similar to that performed by housewives such as childcare and nursing
- the sex typing of occupations affects boys’ snd girls’ ideas about what kind of jobs are possible or acceptable, this also helps to explain why vocational courses are much more gender specific than academic ones since vocational studies are by definition more linked to career plans
GENDER, VOCATIONAL CHOICE AND CLASS-WC PUPILS OFTEN MAKE DECISIONS ABOUT VOCATIONAL COURSES BASED ON A TRADITIONAL SENSE OF GENDER IDENTITY-WHAT DOES FULLER SAY ABOUT THIS?
-most WC girls studied by fuller had ambitions to go into jobs such as childcare or hair and beauty which reflected their WC habitual- their sense of what is a realistic expectation for ‘people like us’.
-These ambitions may rise out of work experience placements in feminine WC jobs such as nursing or retail work as these were the norm for girls in her study
-fuller concludes that the school was implicitly steering girls towards certain types of jobs and hence certain types of vocational courses through the work experience placements offered to them
EVALUATION/CRITICISM POINT 1-EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES POLICIES
- much of the research into gender differences in subject choice has not taken into account the impact of GIST and WISE that encourage girls into more male dominated professions. These policies have gone some way to ensure a more equal split of genders in subject choice
EVALUATION/CRITICISM POINT 2-METHODOLOGICAL EVALUATION OF SUBJECT CHOICE
-although subject choice and gender are relatively easy concepts to define, it is hard to observe and so a lot of the research into it involves sociologists making their own judgements on the patterns seen which weakens the validity of the research
