Gender: Outside factors Flashcards
What internal factors impact gender
- Impact of feminism
- Changes in the family
- Chnages in expectations
- Changes in employment
- Boys and literacy
McRobbie - Feminism
Girls magazines contain images of independent and assertive women.
How has the family changed?
Increase divorce, decreased marriage and lone parenting means women now take on the role of breadwinner
What do female breadwinners act as ?
Role models for younger girls who no longer have to reply on men for financial support
Sharpe
interviewed school girls:
1970s: valued marriage and saw education as unfeminine
1994: Saw futures as an independent women with a career
How has employment changed for women ?
Equal pay Act 1970 reduced pay gap ensuring more equal.
Mitsos and Browne
Expansion of opportunities for women in service sector, part time work and flexibility made education more valued.
Mitsos and Browne
Some women are breaking through the glass-ceiling and accessing high- level professional jobs
What do girls develop?
Bedroom culture centred around staying in and talking to friends while boys develop language skills through leisure.
Weakness of External factors of gender
- Reductionist
- Radical feminists: Criticise
- Linked to social class some working class women continue to have gender stereotyped aspirations
How is the External explanation to gender differences in education reductionist ?
Blames external factors when school may be to blame
oversimplified
How would Radical feminists criticise the External explanation to gender differences in education ?
Patriarchy still exists in society and many girls are still not achieving their full potential - still struggling to crack the glass ceiling
Example of patriarchy in society ?
7% of the Top FTSE companies chief executives are women
