Sexual + gender identities in school

Question 1

What can symbolic capital cause in girls and boys, perhaps w/c?

Answer 1

• nike identities (gain status through trends rather than educational achievement/teacher approval
• girls: hyper-heterosexual feminine identities - girls want to be ‘desirable’ and they could avoid bullying e.g ‘tramp’. get boyfriends to gain symbolic capital but bf’s get in the way of school work, etc.
• both conflict with school’s ideal pupil

Question 2

What is the male gaze?

Answer 2

It refers to the way male pupils + teachers view girls - seeing them as sexual objects and making judgments about their appearance

Boys use it to reinforce their dominant heterosexual masculinity, and to devalue femininity

Boys prove their masculinity by talking about sexual encounters etc, if they don’t they may be labelled ‘gay’