Gender & Achievement: Girls

Patterns of achievement
1. Historically, females have tended to achieve less well than males at higher levels in the British education system.
  1. Early 1990s = boys more likely to gain A-level qualifications & went on to study in higher education.
    1. During the 1990s, girls overtook boys at all levels in the education system.
2. 2007: 66% of girls achieved 5+ GCSEs at grades A* - C compared with 57% of boys.
3. Proportion of females in the UK achieving 2+ A-levels or equivalent increased from 20% in 1990 to 42% in 2006
  1. Over the same period, proportion of males achieving the same level increased from 18% to 33%.
4. 2006: 30% of 17 year old males & 37% of females went on to higher education.
5. On average, women now get better degrees than men.
Gender & subject choice
1. A-level
  1. Males more likely to do business studies, economics, politics, sciences (apart from biology) & technical subjects.
  2. Females more likely to do all other subjects & for English, modern languages, psychology, sociology they are the big majority of candidates.
2. Degree level
  1. Men more likely to graduate in physical sciences, maths, engineering, technology, architecture, building & planning.
  2. Women more likely to graduate in all other subjects & have overtaken males in medicine, dentistry & business & financial studies.
Feminst perspective - female underachievement & gendered curriculum choice
1. Feminists generally believe that the education system is patriarchal/ male-dominated.
2. Miriam David (2008) points out that women are more likely to attend new, post -1992 unis than more prestigious institutions.
3. Female disadvantage may still have an effect on subject choices, & particularly the under-representation of women in most science subjects.
4. Feminist Michelle Stanworth (1983) studied A-level classes in a further education college.
  1. She found the following bias against girls: teachers found it difficult to remember the girls in their class, teachers did not expect even the most able girls to go into high-status jobs, pupils believed that boys received more attention than girls, & boys were more likely to join classroom discussions & to be asked ?s by the teachers & girls underestimated their own ability.
  2. Stanworth's research has been criticized by Randall (1987) for being based on interviews rather than direct observation of classroom interaction. Randall's own research failed to find the same bias against girls.
5. Francis (2000) - girls & achievement
  1. Studies found by Francis suggest that there continues to be some disadvantages for girls in the education system.
  2. Research in London schools found that males still dominate classrooms.
  3. Boys disciplined more harshly than girls; this leads to girls getting less attention than boys.
  4. Gender divisons in subject choice are getting stronger, with fewer women taking IT & pure science degrees.
6. Colley (1998) - gender inequalities in subject choice
  1. Explains the continuing differences in subject choice by gender.
  2. Traditional definitions in masculinity & femininity are still widspread.
  3. Subjects continue to have different images. For instance, computer studies still retains a masculine image.
  4. Girls tend to feel comfortable with scientific & technical subjects only when taught in single-sex schools or single-sex classes.
7. Norman et al. (1988) - Socialization
  1. Argues that sex stereotyping starts from a very young age.
  2. Girls are given dolls which emphasize a caring role; this can affect career aspirations & subject choice.
  3. Boys are more likely to be given constructional toys that help develop a scientific & mathematical skills & concept
  4. Gender sterotypes are continually reinforced through the media.

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Gender & Achievement: Girls

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