Subject Choice

• Regardless of the improved position of females within education, there still seems to be a traditional ‘masculine’ & feminine’ divide when it comes to subject choices.  This  has interested sociologists as it suggests that, despite attempts to break down the gender gap within education, traditional gender identities are still extremely significant.
• Socialisation

  Differences in socialisation  leads to different attitudes towards & accordingly differences in subject choices between boys & girls.-Elwood
• Socialisation

  These arguments suggest that, at a very young age, children are ‘shaped’ into ‘Gender-Roles. This is spurred on by the process of ‘Canalisation’.
• Gender Identity And Image

  Science Teachers more likely to be male

  > Textbooks & class examples usually draw on boys experiences & interests.

  > Boys monopolise equipment & apparatus.-Kelly Science For Girls
• Peer Pressure

  Girls who choose sport are often stigmatised as it is seen to fall within the ‘Male Gender Domain’. Peer pressure exerts a huge influence over subject choice.- paetcher
• Gender Careered Opportunity

  Girls who choose sport are often stigmatised as it is seen to fall within the ‘Male Gender Domain’. Peer pressure exerts a huge influence over subject choice.Females are largely centred around four main areas (Clerical, Secretarial, Personal Services & Cleaning Work (men make up only 1/6 of workers in these areas.
• Verbal Abuse

  In her US study she found that girls would be labelled as ‘Lesbian’ or ‘Butch’ if they got involved in sports.
• Male peer group

  Male gaze, teacher and discipline and double standards
• Hidden curriculum

  Unintended lessons that students learn in school, beyond the formal curriculum
• Textbooks

  • Have a male bias (Deem 1980)
  • History textbooks ignore female contribution to history
• Language

  • Fundamental male bias (Spender 1988)
  • Using 'man' and 'he' to stand for both sexes
  • Using words such as chairman
• School/college organisation

  • Sends messages to males and females about their likely positions in society
  • Men tend to be found at the top of the hierarchy
  • Women tend to be found at the bottom of the hierarchy
• Hidden Curriculum

  Unintended lessons that students learn in school, beyond the formal curriculum
• Teachers' attitudes

  • Some sociologists argue that teachers have stereotyped attitudes towards males and females which may affect how they treat them in the classroom
  • This can affect subject choice and how males and females feel about their place in society
• Spender (1982) tape recorded lessons given by herself and found that she had given the girls 42% of her time, whilst the boys received 58%
• Other teachers Spender had taped were also surprised that they had given more time to boys
• Spender's belief

  The only way girls will get a fair treatment in education is by going to a single sex school