T2 | Subject Choice Flashcards
When did the National Curriculum become introduced and what did it consist of?
Introduced in 1988 under the Education Reform Act.
The National Curriculum consists of the following group of subjects:
1. Core (eg. english, maths, science)
2. Foundation (eg. IT, RE, Art and Design, MFL, history music, PE)
3. Other (eg. sociology, psychology, philosophy etc.)
What is gender role socialisation? What does Norman (1988) and Byrne (1979) have to say about it?
Gender role socialisation is the process of learning the behaviour expected of males and females in a society.
> Norman (1988)
— This takes place from an early stage
— School reinforces gender socialisation
> Byrne (1979)
— Teachers encourage boys to be tough and show initiative and girls are expected to be neat, tidy and quiet
What do Browne and Ross (1991) say about gender domains?
> Browne and Ross (1991)
— Children’s’ beliefs and experiences are shaped by the expectations and experiences of adults in their life.
— Children are more confident when engaging in tasks they see as part of their gender domain (eg. girls taking care of a child, boys playing with trucks and dinosaurs).
What does Murphy (1991) say about gender domains?
> Murphy (1991)
— Boys and girls pay attention to different details when tackling the same problem
— Girls focus on how people feel
— Boys focus on how things are done
What does Kelly say about gendered subject images?
> Kelly
— Science is seen as a boys subject.
- Science teachers are more likely to be male
- Examples interest drawn on boys’ interests
- Boys monopolise the apparatus and dominate their lab
What does Colley (1988) say about computer studies and gendered subject images?
> Colley (1988)
— Computer studies is seen as a masculine subject
- Involves working with machines (male gender domain)
- The way it’s taught is off-putting for girls
How may single sex schooling affect subject choice?
Pupils who attend single sex schools have less stereotyped subject images.
What does Diana Leonard (2006) say about single sex schools?
> Diana Leonard (2006)
— She says that girls in girls’ schools were more likely to take maths and science as an A-level and boys in boy schools are more likely to take english and languages.
— This is supported by the Institute of Physics Study, that says, girls in single sex state schools are 2.4x more likely to take A-Level Physics.
what does Paetcher (1998) say about gender identity and peer pressure and how it may affect subject choice?
> Paetcher (1998)
— Says that pupils see sport as a male dominating subject
— This is off-putting for girls that’s why they tend to steer away from sports
What does Dewar say about gender identity and peer pressure and how it may affect subject choice?
> Dewar
— Says that girls would be ridiculed, called a lesbian or butch and this has put off some girls from pursuing sporty and male dominated subjects.
How may gendered career options affect subject choice?
Employment is undeniably gendered:
— This can impact subject choice as jobs tend to be sex typed
— This explanation can also be used to explain differences in vocational subjects
What does Carol Fuller (1995) suggest how gender vocational choice and class may affect subject choice?
> Carol Fuller (1995)
— Working class girls had ambitions to go into jobs such as childcare or beauty
— Work experience placements in feminine working class jobs is nursery or retail
— Schools were steering girls towards certain types of jobs
What does Bob Connell (1995) say about how pupils’ sexual and gender identities may affect subject choice?
> Bob Connell (1995)
— Hegemonic masculinity is a dominant of heterosexual masculine identity and the subordination of female and gay identities.
What do sociologists say about teachers and discipline and how they may affect subject choice?
> Chris Haywood et al. (1996)
— Male teachers told boys off for “behaving like girls” and tease them when they gained lower marks than girls
> Sue Askew and Carol Ross (1988)
— Male teachers have a protective attitude towards female colleagues (eg. recruiting them from a disrupting class).
