AQA A Level Sociology - Gender Differences in education

On starting school

- end of year one, girls between 7 and 17% ahead
- girls better at concentrating
- boys 2.5x likely to have SEN

At Key Stages 1 to 3

- girls do consistently better than boys
- english, gap widens with age
- science and maths, narrower but girls still do better

At GCSE

- gender gap around 10%

At AS and A Level

- girls more likely to sit, pass and achieve higher
- 2013 A-B; girls 46.8% and boys 42.2%

On vocational courses

- larger prop of girls achieve distinction in almost every subject
- including engineering and construction where girls are tiny minority

Impact of feminism (E)

- since 60s/70s, challenged trad roles, improved self-esteem

Impact of feminism (R)

- McRobbie (study of magazines) 70s - housewife 'left on the shelf'; now - independent, assertive

Impact of feminism (C)

- ruling class capitalises off rising female employment

Changes in ambition (E)

- Sharpe, 70s, housewife and mother, 90s, career-driven and supporting themselves.

Changes in ambition (R)

- to achieve independence - education important. Fuller - educational success = central part of identity.

Changes in ambition (C)

- w/c have lower aspirations

Changes in women's employment (E)

- going out in great number since the 70s

Changes in women's employment (R)

- 1970 Equal Pay Act, Shared Parental leave - drives moral and career potential

Changes in women's employment (C)

- Dual burden

Changes in the family (E)

- divorce reform, increased cohabitation, single-mother families

Changes in the family (R)

- need to take breadwinner role, less ability to rely on husband, more role models

Changes in the family (C)

- Marx Fem - Fuller w/c have low-level jobs

Equal Opportunity Policies (E)

- belief of equal opportunities part of mainstream

Equal Opportunity Policies (C)

- Rad Fem - under-representation. Weiner - secondary history = 'woman-free zone'

Equal Opportunity Policies (R)

- GIST, WISE, National Curriculum - role models

Positive Role Models (E)

- 15% increase in secondary female head teachers

Positive Role Models (R)

- shows success of women in education - have control i the system

Positive Role Models (C)

- Rad Fem - male teachers more likely to become secondary heads

GCSE and Coursework - Gorard (R)

- gender gap constant but widened with 1988 national curriculum
- coursework in most subjects
- gender gap due to changed system - not male failure

GCSE and Coursework - Mitsos and Browne (R)

Girls
- conscientious and organised
- spend more time/care
- have equipment/materials
- better at deadlines

GCSE and Coursework - Gender Role Socialisation (R)

- girls are encouraged to be neat and tidy
- socialised to do this so carry on in school

Criticism of GCSE and coursework (C)

Elwood - exams have more influence

Teacher Attention (E)

- interaction differs between girls and boys

Teacher attention - French (R)

- analysed teacher interactions
- boys = more attention and attracted more disapproval

Teacher attention - Francis (R)

- boys = disciplined more harshly, felt picked on, lower expectations

Teacher attention - Swann (R)

- communication styles
- boys dominate whole-class discussion - interrupt one another
- girls = participate in more group/pair work - take turns

Teacher attention (C)

Marxists
- class differences regarding teacher attention are much more apparent.
- w/c boys are more likely to be labelled as 'disruptive'

Challenging Stereotypes in the Curriculum (E)

- removal of stereotypes in learning materials - removes achievement barrier

Challenging Stereotypes in the Curriculum (R)

- 70s/80s - reading schemes very stereotypical
Weiner
- teachers have challenged
- sexist images removed
- ^ achievement with positive imagery

Challenging Stereotypes in the Curriculum (C)

sexual harassment within schools - men still have control

Selection and League Tables (E)

- marketisation and competition makes girls more desirable due to their better exam results

Selection and League Tables - Jackson (R)

- league tables provide more opportunities for girls
- creates a self-fulfilling prophecy

Selection and League Tables - Slee (R)

- selection and league tables make boys less attractive
- 4x more likely to be excluded
- 'liability students'
- 'rough and tough' schools less attractive to high achieving girls

Selection and League Tables (C)

Marx Feminists
- w/c girls less likely to go to high performing schools
- material deprivation limits access to local school

Symbolic Capital (E)

Archer
- status recognition obtained from others
- w/c and m/c differences due to female w/c identities

Symbolic Capital (R)

- performing female w/c identities helps to gain symbolic capital
- this conflicts with schools
- prevents them from achieving and from educational and economic capital

Symbolic Capital (C)

New Right
- education fails to teach shared identities
- this is why w/c girls are failing

'Successful' w/c Girls (E)

- some do succeed and go on to higher education
- however may be disadvantaged

'Successful' w/c Girls - Evans (R)

- w/c girls in London sixth form
- girls go to uni in order to increase earning power
- 'give something back to the family'

'Successful' w/c Girls - Skeggs (R)

- reflected w/c female identity
- 'caring' - part of identity when pursuing higher education

'Successful' w/c Girls - Archer (R)

- staying at home for uni reflects w/c habitus
- home is familiar and community is a part of w/c subculture
- links to Marxist idea of family being shelter from capitalism

'Successful' w/c Girls (C)

- £9k a year
- just because they are high-achieving doesn't mean they can still afford tuition fees

Boys and Literacy (E)

- gender gap = poorer language and lit skills
- parents spend less times reading to boys
- mothers read to sons = feminises reading

Boys and Literacy (R)

- girls have a 'bedroom culture'
- stay in and chat
- boys spend more time in leisure activities
- develop language less

Boys and Literacy (C)

Dads and Sons Campaign

Globalisation and the decline of traditional men's jobs (E)

- since 80s - decline in heavy industries (iron and steel)
- manufacturing relocated

Globalisation and the decline of traditional men's jobs (R)

- Mitsos and Browne 'gender crisis'
- little prospect of getting proper job
- undermines motivation and self-esteem
- give up on qualifications

Globalisation and the decline of traditional men's jobs (C)

- manual w/c jobs require few/no qualifications
- unlikely to impact motivation to obtain qualifications

Shortage of male primary school teachers (E)

- lack of male role models (home and school) causes underachievement
- large number of boys brought up in 1.5 million female-headed lone parent families

Shortage of male primary school teachers (R)

- 14% male primary teachers
- most boys surveyed = said performed better with male teacher
- 42% said it made them work harder
- female teacher unable to control behaviours

Shortage of male primary school teachers (C)

feminists
- undermines the educations provided by women
- sexist
- assumes women are 'weak' and unable to control boy's behaviour

Feminisation of education (E)

Sewell
- education has become feminised
- schools don't nurture 'masculine' traits such as competition and leadership
- celebrates methodical working and attentiveness

Feminisation of education (R)

Sewell
- coursework = cause of gender differences
- should be replaced with exams and outdoor adventure
- 'thrown boy out with the bathwater'

Feminisation of education (C)

Feminists
- result of toxic masculinity
- marketisation policies that encourage competition actually favour high-achieving girls, not boys.

Are more male teachers really needed? (E)

Francis
- 2/3 of 7-8 year olds viewed their teachers gender as unimportant

Are more male teachers really needed? - Read (R)

Read - studied teacher's language
- most used disciplinary discourse (shouting/exasperated tone)
- both genders maintain masc atmosphere and discipline

Are more male teachers really needed? - Jones (R)

- 1 in 4 male teachers are able to attain head ship
- 1 in 13 for women
- primary school is masculinised despite more female teachers

Are more male teachers really needed? (C)

New Right
- lack of male role models is bad for the function of society

'Laddish Subculture' (E)

- contributed to underachievement
Epstein
- w/c boys likely to be harrassed/labelled as 'sissies'/experience homophobia if appear as 'swots'

'Laddish Subculture' (R)

Francis
- boys concern lies with being labelled as swots due to threat to masculinity
- w/c culture = manual work = masc
- reject schoolwork = avoid being called 'gay'

'Laddish Subculture' (C)

- feminists - due to toxic masculinity within patriarchy - we cannot have equality for all genders until it has been deconstructed

Moral panic about boys (E)

critics of feminism:
- policies promoting female education no longer needed
- 'girl power' and 'having it all'
- boys at a disadvantage; girls taking jobs
- moral panic about failing boys = w/c boys threaten social stability

Moral panic about boys (R)

Ringrose
- moral panic = shift in edu policy
negative effects:
1) too specific - ignores w/c and minority ethnic pupils
2) ignores problems for girls in school - sexual harassment and bullying

Moral panic about boys (C)

- both sexes improved steadily
- whilst boys lagging behind - still better than past

Gender role socialisation - subject choice (E)

- early socialisation = shapes children's gender identity
Norman
- early age, boys + girls dressed/toys/activities different
Murphy and Elwood
- Boys = non-fiction
- Girls = fiction

Gender role socialisation - subject choice (R)

Browne and Ross - 'gender domain'
- tasks and activities b + g see as male and female 'territory'
- fixing cars = boys, looking after people = girls
Murphy
girls = how people feel = art/humanities
boys = how things work = science

Gender role socialisation - subject choice (C)

doesn't explain equality in A level history exams (2013)

Gendered subject images (E)

gender image - affects who will choose it
Kelly - science = male
- male teachers
- examples draw on male interests
- boys monopolise on apparatus - 'theirs'

Gendered subject images (R)

Colley
- computing seen as masc
- machines
- off-putting teaching - formal - less group work

Gendered subject images (C)

Leonard - single-sex schooling
- girls 2.4x more likely to take A level physics than mixed

Gender identity and peer pressure (E)

- subject choice = influenced by peer pressure
- boys - music and dance falls out gender domain - negative response

Gender identity and peer pressure (R)

Paetcher
- sport = male
- sporty girls contradict fem stereotype
- explains why opt out of sport

Gender identity and peer pressure (C)

Form of role allocation
- women are biologically better at homemaker roles in workplace such as child care and nursing

Gendered career opportunities (E)

- jobs sex-typed as male or female
- women's job translates housewife role = childcare/nursing

Gendered career opportunities (R)

half of women's employment
- clerical
- secretarial
- personal services
- occupations such as cleaning

Gendered career opportunities (C)

Marxist - social class differences apparent

Fuller - w/c girls

- childcare/hair and beauty - reflect w/c habitus

- expectations arise from work experience

What is hegemonic masculinity?

Connell
- the dominance of heterosexual masculine identity and the subordination of female and gay identities

Double standards (E)

- a set of morals that applies to one group, but not the other

Double standards - Lees (R)

Lees - double standards of sexual morality
- boys = boast about sexual exploits - status from peers and ignored by teachers
- girls = 'slags' - 'promiscuity' attracts negative labels

Double standards - Feminists (R)

- example of patriarchal ideology
- male power = justified and used as a form of social control
- women = devalued

Double standards (C)

Marxists
- patriarchy based on capitalist structure
- ruling class have separate standards to working classes

Verbal Abuse (E)

Connell
- 'rich vocabulary of abuse' used in a way which dominant sexual and gender identities are reinforced
- name calling used to put girls down (Lees)

Verbal Abuse - Paetcher (R)

- name calling = shapes gender identity and male power
- 'gay' 'queer'

Verbal Abuse - Parker (R)

- gay for being friendly with girls or female teachers

Verbal Abuse - Paetcher and Lees (R)

- no relation between verbal abuse and pupils actual sexual behaviour

Verbal Abuse (C)

New Right
- reinforcing masculine identities is good for social solidarity
- natural

The Male Gaze (E)

Mac an Ghaill
- the way male pupils and teachers look girls up and down
- see them as sexual objects
- make judgements about their appearance.

The Male Gaze (R)

Mac an Ghaill
- way of surveillance through which dominant heterosexual masculinity is reinforced
- femininity devalued
- telling and retelling of sexual conquests
- boys who don't display heterosexuality labelled as gay

The Male Gaze (C)

- changing attitudes
- changes in law and women's positions
- liberation of women

Male Peer Groups (E)

- use verbal abuse to reinforce their definitions of masculinity
- Epstein and Willis studies show boys in anti-school subcultures = accuse those as effeminate or gay

Male Peer Groups - Mac an Ghaill (R)

- examined how peer groups reproduce class-based masc identities
- 'macho lads' saw hard-working w/c boys as 'dickhead achievers'
- middle-class 'real Englishmen' maintain appearance of 'effortless achievement'
- changes from lower school to sixth form

Male Peer Groups (C)

feminists
- toxic masc due to patriarchy

Female peer groups: policing identity (E)

- females police their identities - called 'tramp' if failure to conform
- through symbolic capital

Female peer groups: policing identity - Ringrose (R)

- study of 13-14 y/o w/c girls
- popular = crucial to identity
- tension between idealised feminine identity (loyalty to friends) and sexualised identity (dating culture)

Female peer groups: policing identity - Currie et al (R)

- 'slut shaming' vs 'frigid shaming'
- balance two identities
- schoolgirls police, regulate and discipline each other