Mini topic 4: Gender and achievement

Question 1

Introduction

give me 3 reason why girl achieve better than boys

Answer 1

1. better literacy and communication skills
2. increased in employment opportunities
3. positive female role models

Question 2

1.What are 3 external factors for girls success?

+ criticism for each external factor.

Answer 2

1.Impact of feminism
Feminists movement - improved the position of women in society. For e.g changes in the law like equal pay act and sex discrimination act. Encourages girls to gain qualifications
What did Mc Robbie study show?
Studied girls in magazines from 1970s and 1990s
1970s magazines =the importance of getting married
1990s magazine= strong independent women
Shows e.g of social change brought about by feminism

criticism for impact of feminism: reay= feminism has not affected all girls’/c girls have limited aspirations for careers as they face limited job opportunities as they see marriage and motherhood more achievable and source of status

2 Changes in the family
Increase in divorce = created a type of positive role model for girls. Financially independent women
To achieve this independence women need well paid jobs which need high qualifications
This encourages girls to remain in education

criticism for changes in family: New right= lone parent mother are negative role models as they dependent on benefits

3. Increased in women’s employment opportunities
   New employment laws have been introduced to establish equality between men and women at work
   -equal pay act 1970
   -sex discrimination act 1975
   Increase in the number of working women due to the growth of the service sector which tends to employ women. This gives girls an incentive to get qualifications as there is employments opportunities

Criticism: Quaternary sector =replacing service sector as it prefers to employ men

Question 3

What are 3 internal factors for girls success

+ criticism for each internal factor

Answer 3

1. Positive role models at schools
   Increase in female teachers and headteachers
   These women in authority act as positive female role models to girls
   Girls can see women can succeed which motivates them to gain qualifications

criticism : Most senior teachers like headteachers are boys yet boys still underachieve

2. introduction to compulsory subjects
   - Girls performance in gcse and coursework has sharply risen then boys
   - mitsos and browne =due to the fact that girls are better organised and spend more time on their work
   - This is because of gender socialisation= encourages girls to be neat and tidy

criticism: Elwood=Exams have more influence than final grade so coursework doesn’t have huge impact on girls achievement

3. Challenging stereotypes in curriculum
   Sexist images have been removed from textbooks
   Weiner = teachers now challenge prejudice
   Presents girls with positive images of women

criticism: Feminist would say education is still patriarchal e.g history lessons focus on men

Question 4

Working class girls underachievement

1. introduction why do they underachieve?
2. who is sociologist and why does she say w.c girls underachieve?
3. 3 reason why they underachieve?

Answer 4

• Not all girls do well.
• class is factor
• w.c girls underachieve but do better than w.c boys
• Archer et al argues that w.c girls underachieve because of conflict between the w/c femine identity and school values
• when w.c girls experience symbolic violence from their teachers they experience symbolic capital from their peers and this creates a sense of self femine identity by:

1. adopting a hyper heterosexual femine identity - investing their time and effort into their appearances. This helps them achieve their status through their peers however it brings them into conflict with their school as they often break school rules such as makeup.
2. having boyfriends- it distracts them from their studies and lower their aspirations - become focused on settling down and having children and lose their interest in going uni and developing careers.
3. Being loud and outspoken for e.g questioning the teachers authority which leads to conflicts as teacher perceive the girls assertiveness as aggression.

• therefore they face a dilemma either gain respect from their peers or abandon their w.c femine identity and conform to schools in which case they will do well.
• either way they will have to give up something.
• some w.c girls cope with this by defining themselves as “good underneath” - teachers see and treat them as bad but they try to believe they are good to give them selves a sense of worth when schools make them feel worthless.

Question 5

Boys underachievement
introduction
3 reason why boys underachieve

Answer 5

1. boys are achieving but at slower rate
2. age 6 boys are behind girls at reading and writing
3. boys more likely to be excluded from school than girls.

Question 6

boys underachieve

3 external factors why boys underachieve?

Answer 6

1.Literacy skills
Boys have poor literacy skills and language than girls
Most of the reading done at home is by mothers so activity becomes associated with femininity. Thus boys reject it.

2.Decline in traditional men jobs
Decline in industry which employ men such as iron and steel etc
Mitsos and browne = say this had led to crisis of masculinity
Lack of traditional jobs make boys believe they won’t get jobs so they give up on trying to get qualifications

3.Leisure
Boys leisure pursuits such as football and console games do not contribute to developing literacy skills
Girls have bedroom culture-staying in and talking to friends this develop communication, listening and speaking skills

Question 7

Boys underachievement

3 internal factors why they underachieve

Answer 7

1.feminsation of education
Sewell = schools do not encourage masculine characteristics instead they encourage traits associated with femininity such as methodical work and attentiveness

2.Laddish counter school subculture  
Epstein-high achieving working class boys =labelled as “swots” by their peers and tend to be harassed to homophobic abuse 
Francis=boys avoid being labelled “swots” because educational achievement is seems as femine so they do little or no school work and mess about in lessons

3.Lack of positive male role models
Large number of boys are brought up in lone parent families
16% of primary school teachers are males
criticism = most headteachers are males so boys do have a positive role model to look up to

Question 8

formation of gender identities

3 ways schools help influence gender identities of its students

Answer 8

1.verbal abuse
paetcher = boys use name calling of girls and “effeminate” boys to maintain male power and reinforce gender norms.
parker = found that boys were called homophobic names simply for being freinds with girls regardless of their actual sexual orientation.

2.Double standards
lees= boys boasts about and exaggerates their sexual prowess. While girls who are seen as dressing provocatively are labelled “slags”.

3.Male gaze
Men look women up and down seeing themselves as sexual objects and judging them on their appearance
Mac and ghail see male gaze as a form of surveillance through which dominate hetrosexuality is enforced. it reinforces the boys masculinity by devaluing femeninty which helps keeps girls in place.

Question 9

What are 3 factors that influence boys and girls choice of subjects to pick

Answer 9

1. .Peer Pressure
   Peer pressure can encourage or discourage students from taking certain subjects
   paetcher E.g boys won’t choose drama, dance or music in fear of negative reaction from peers
   Similarly girls tend not to choose sport

2..Gendered career opportunities
Most jobs as seen as women or men
Women’s job=caring and reflecting the activities of housewives - nursing etc
Affect subject choice as it gives students ideas about which jobs are suitable and acceptable for which sex

3.Gendered subject images
Different subjects are seen either as boys or girls subjects
kelly= science seen as boy subject, teachers tend to be men, textbook use examples which appeal to be masculine gender domains
colley = comp science is seen as a boys subject as it involves working with machines