Subject Choice - Hectic Teacher Flashcards
Traditional subject choices for boys?
Maths, physics and technology.
Neutral subject choices
English, social sciences and business.
Traditional subject choices for girls?
Humanities and languages.
Trends in subject choice at GCSE?
The national curriculum and GCSEs gives little choice however trends can be seen in options with boys taking more practical and vocational based subjects e.g. business and technology whereas girls opt for the humanities and arts based subjects.
Trends in subject choice at A-level
The difference in subject choice are much more apparent at A level as there is a wider choice.
Boys tend to take more technical subjects e.g. computing, physics and maths and girls take subjects such as sociology, English and languages.
Trends in subject choice: vocational education
Gender segregation is noticeable within vocational education, with girls opting for careers which are more caring and traditionally female e.g. child care, health and beauty and social care.
Whereas boys tend to go for more technical courses such as mechanics, engineering and construction.
Explanations for trends in subject choice: gender role socialisation
Girls and boys are raised differently and this can channel them into different subjects at school.
Norman links this to different activities boys and girls take part in.
Murphy and Elwood link this to the bedroom culture and that girls read more fiction which leads to more expressive subjects however boys read more hobby books which leads to more technical subjects.
Browne and Ross state gender creates gender domains based around hat they see the adults around them doing.
Explanations for trends in subject choice: Gender subject image
This affects who chooses what subject at GCSE and A Level.
Kelly argues science is seen as a boy subject due to there being more male teachers, textbook illustrations focus on boys interests e.g. sport.
Whichever gender dominates in the lesson can influence gender image e.g. girls dominate drama and arts whereas boys dominate PE>
Explanations for trends in subject choice: gender identities and peer group pressures
Students can face extreme pressure to conform to gender stereotypes in order to be accepted by their peers.
Paechter found sport is often seen as a male domain and girls will be seen as unfeminine if they opt for it.
Dewar also found when students opt for opposite domain subjects they are subject to name calling and bullying.
Explanations for trends in subject choice: ethnicity
Ethnocentric curriculum - BAME students may be put off from studying subjects such as English and history due to the focus on white British culture.
English as an additional language - students may be channelled to less academic subjects due to levels of English language.
Explanations for trends in subject choice: class
Material factors - some students may feel excluded from certain subjects due to the cost of completing the course e.g. art and music.
Cultural factors - w/c students may feel certain subjects aren’t for them as they dont possess the cultural knowledge to succeed e.g. drama and English.
Labelling - w/c students may be pushed towards less academic and more vocational subjects.
Explanations for trends in subject choice evaluation - gender
- Move toward sender neutral parenting and socialisation.
- Leonard - gendered subject image has less impact in single sex schools which shows genderisation is a social construct.
- Programmes such as GIST and WISE help draw girls into sciences.
Explanations for trends in subject choice evaluation - ethnicity
Globalisation has created a more multicultural curriculum with wider choices to the units taught.
Explanations for trends in subject choice evaluation - class
Policies such as pupil premium are in place to support students from deprived backgrounds with the hidden cost of education
