P1 Education - Boys and Girls Achievement

Question 1

What’s girls achievement in education like?

Answer 1

While on average girls now achieve more than in the past, it does not mean that all girls achieve as there are different social classes

Question 2

What is symbolic capital?

Answer 2

The status, recognition and sense of worth we obtain from others

Question 3

What does feminist Louis Archer argue?

Answer 3

She says that one reason is the conflict between working class girls feminine identity and the value and ethos of the school.

Question 4

What did Archer argue?

Answer 4

Archer found that by performing their working class feminine identities the girls gained symbolic capital from their peers - but that brought them into conflict with the school preventing educational capital.

Question 5

How did Archer argue symbolic capital was gained?

Answer 5

1. Hyper heterosexual feminine identities
2. Boyfriends
3. Being loud

Question 6

What is the working class girl dilemma?

Answer 6

Working class girls have to face a dilemma, whether they want to gain symbolic capital or gain educational capital.
Some try to deal with this dilemma by defining themselves as good underneath - despite teachers negative views of them

Question 7

How do working class girls cope with the dilemma?

Answer 7

They define themselves as good underneath - despite teachers negative views of them.

This reflects the struggles to achieve a sense of self worth and reinforces the conflict for working class girls within the education system

Question 8

What did Sarah Evans discover?

Answer 8

She found that working class girls wanted to go to university for their families not themselves, this reflected their working class feminine identity
BUT
They needed to live at home, economic necessity, fear of debt, limited choice of university and degree.

Question 9

What are the reasons for boys falling behind in education?

Answer 9

1. Boys and Literacy
2. Globalisation
3. Feminisation of Education
4. Shortage of male primary school teachers
5. Laddish Subcultures

Question 10

Why is literacy a reason for boys falling behind?

Answer 10

Boys tend to have a poorer literacy and language skills and this may be due to parents spending less time reading to their sons
Boys leisure pursuits don’t help develop their language and communication skills (football)

Question 11

How does globalisation cause boys to fall behind?

Answer 11

Since the 1980s there has been a decline a heavy industries such as iron and steel etc. These sectors mainly employed men.

Question 12

What does Mitosis and Brown say about the decline in male employment opportunities?

Answer 12

That it’s led for an identity crisis for men and many boys now believe that they have little prospect of getting a proper job. This undermines their motivation and self esteem and so they give up trying to get qualifications

Question 13

Why is feminisation of education a reason for boys falling behind?

Answer 13

Tony Sewell is reported as claiming that boys fall behind because education has become feminised.
Schools tend to celebrate qualities associated with girls (methodical working + attentiveness).

Question 14

What does Tony Sewell say about coursework?

Answer 14

Sewell sees coursework as a major cause of gender differences in achievement. He argues that some coursework should be replaced with final exams and a greater emphasis placed on outdoor adventure in the curriculum

Question 15

Why is a shortage of male primary teachers a reason for boys falling behind?

Answer 15

The lack of male role models at school is a reason for boys underachievement.
- Only 14% of primary school teachers are male.
- Boys tend to behave better and 42% said it makes them work harder.

Question 16

Why are laddish subcultures a reason for boys falling behind?

Answer 16

Debbie Epstein examined the way that masculinity is constructed within schools.
She found that working class boys are likely to be harassed, labelled as sissies and subjected to homophobic verbal abuse if they appear to be swots.

Question 17

What is the moral panic about boys?

Answer 17

Critics of feminism argue that policies to promote girls education are no longer needed - girls now have it all - boys are now being disadvantaged

Question 18

What does Ring-rose say about the moral panic about boys?

Answer 18

Some views have reflected the fear that underachieving working class boys will grow up to be dangerous, unemployable and threaten social stability

Question 19

What does Ring-rose say about the shift in educational policy?

Answer 19

Ring-rose argues that this panic has caused a shift in educational policy, which is now focused on raising achievement and has two negative consequences:
1. Ignores the problem of disadvantaged working class and ethnic minority backgrounds
2. Ignores the additional problems faced by girls in school - sexual harassment, bullying etc

Question 20

What does Tracey McVeigh argue?

Answer 20

The similarities in boys and girls achievement are far greater than the differences - especially when compare dot class or ethnicity - class gap is three times wider than the gender gap