A Level Sociology- Gender Differences

• In 2013, teacher assessments of pupils at the end of year one showed girls ahead of boys by between 7-17 percentage points in all 7 areas of learning assessed
• Girls were also better than boys at concentrating
• Boys are two and a half times more likely than girls to have a statement of special educational needs
• Girls do consistently better than boys, especially in English where the gender gap steadily widens with age
• In Science and Maths the gap is much narrower, but girls still do better
• The gender gap in achievement at GCSE stands at about 10 percentage points in 2013, but in recent years boys are catching girls up
• In English at GCSE, the gender gap is huge with 70% of girls getting an A*-C, compared to just 54% of boys in 2014
• Girls are more likely to sit, pass and get higher grades than boys at AS and A Level, though the gap is much narrower than at GCSE
• In 2013, 47% of girls gained A or B grades at A Level, but only 42% of boys
• Even in so-called 'boys' subjects such as maths and physics girls were more likely than boys to get grades A-C
• A higher proportion of girls stay on in sixth form and further education and post-18 higher education
• Female students are more likely to get top 1st class and upper 2nd class degrees
• The Impact of Feminism

  Since the 1960s, the feminist movement has challenged the traditional stereotype of a woman's role as solely that of mother and housewife. These changes are partly reflected in media images and messages.
• A good illustration comes from Angela McRobbie's (1994) study of girls' magazines


  • In the 1970's they emphasised the importance of getting married and not being left on the shelf, whereas nowadays they contain images of assertive independent women
• Girls' Changing Ambitions


  Sharpe (1994) interviewed girls in the 1970s and 1990s to show a major shift in how they see their future. In 1974 girls had low aspirations believing that educational success was unfeminine and that appearing ambitious would be unattractive. However in the 1990s girls had a placed importance on a career and being able to support themselves.
• Francis (2001) found that girls now had higher career aspirations and so needed educational qualifications
• Changes in the Family

  Changes in the family such as an increase in the divorce rate, cohabitation and lone parent families have all affective girls' and boys' attitudes towards education. For example, increasing numbers of female-headed lone-parent families may mean more women need to take on a breadwinner role. This in turn creates a new adult role model for girls, the financially independent woman.
• Furthermore this may explain underachievement in boys through lack of a male role model in the family unit to aspire to
• Changes in the Labour Market

  The 1970 Equal Pay Act makes it illegal to pay women less than men for work of equal value, and the 1975 Sex Discrimination Act outlaws discrimination at work. These changes have encouraged women to see their future in terms of paid work rather than as housewives. Greater career opportunities and better pay for women provide an incentive for girls to gain qualifications.
• Furthermore, there has been a decline in heavy industries such as iron, steel, shipbuilding and mining in the UK. Mitsos and Browne claim that this decline in male employment has led to an 'identity crisis for men'. Many boys now believe that they have little prospect of getting a proper job. This undermines their motivation and self-esteem and so they give up on trying to get qualifications and underachieve at school.
• GCSE and Coursework


  Gorard (2005) found that the gender gap in achievement was fairly constant from 1975 until 1989, which it increased sharply. This was the year in which GCSE was introduced, bringing with it coursework as a major part of nearly all subjects. Gorard concludes that the gender gap in achievement in a product of the changed system of assessment rather than of failing of boys. Mitsos and Brown (1998) explain this trend. They conclude that girls are more successful in coursework because they are more conscientious and better organised than boys. For example, girls spend more time on their work, take more care with the way it is presented and are better at meeting deadlines.
• Elwood (2005) argued that although coursework has some influence, it is unlikely to be the only cause of the gender gap because exams have much more influence than coursework in final grades
• Challenging Stereotypes in the Curriculum

  Research in the 1970s and 80s found that reading scheme portrayed women mainly as housewives and mothers, that physics books showed them as frightened by science, and that maths books depicted boys are more inventive. Weiner (1995) argues that since the 1980s, teachers have challenged such stereotypes. Also, in general, sexist imaged have been removed from learning materials. This may have helped to raise girls' achievement by presenting them with more positive images of what women can do.
• Weiner's research has gained theoretical support from Liberal Feminists. They take a march of progress view of education and claim that small improvements inside and outside schools has resulted in an increase in educational achievement amongst females.
• Selection and Marketisation


  Marketisation policies have created a more competitive climate in which schools see girls as desirable recruits because they achieve better exam results. Jackson (1998) notes that the introduction of league tables has improved opportunities for girls: high achieving girls are attractive to schools, whereas low-achieving boys are not. This tends to create a self-fulfilling prophecy – because girls are more likely to be recruited by good schools, they are more likely to do well.
• Slee (1998) offers further explanation of the effects of marketisation by providing an explanation for boys' underachievement. He argues that boys are less attractive to schools because they are more likely to suffer from behavioural problems and are four times more likely to be excluded.
• Feminisation of Education


  Sewell claims that boys fall behind because education has become feminised (BBC, 2006). This is when schools do not nurture masculine traits such as competitiveness and leadership. Instead they celebrate qualities associated with girls such as methodical working and attentiveness in class. As a result boys feel under-valued in the education system and therefore underachieve.
• The feminisation of education does not consider the fact that boys can still be seen to dominate lessons and take up more of the teachers' time. It can be said that perhaps girls are underachieving in school, but not so in relation to boys.
• 'Laddish' Subcultures


  Epstein (1998) argues that the growth of laddish subcultures has contributed to boys' underachievement. She examined the way masculinity is constructed within a school and found that working-class boys are likely to be harassed, labelled as 'sissies' and subject to homophobic verbal abuse if they appear to be swots. This is because in working-class cultures, masculinity is equated with being tough and doing manual work. Non-manual work and by extension school work is seen as effeminate and inferior. As a result, working class boys tend to reject school work to avoid being called 'gay'.
• Epstein's work is supported by Francis (2007) who claims that boys were more concerned than girls about being labelled by peers as swots because this label is more of a threat to their masculinity than it is to girls' femininity.
• Although design and technology is a compulsory subject, girls tend to choose the food technology option whilst boys choose graphics or resistant materials.
• Boys tend to opt for maths and physics and girls choose subject such as sociology, English and Languages. These differences are mirrored at University level.
• Only 1 in 100 boys opt to do a childcare apprenticeship, whereas only 2 in 100 girls opt to do vehicle maintenance and repair.
• Gender Role Socialisation


  Gender role socialisation is a process of learning the behaviour expected of males and females in society. Norman (1988) notes from an early age boys and girls are dressed differently, given different toys and encouraged to take part in different activities.
• Murphy and Elwood (1979) demonstrate how this can result in different tastes in reading and therefore subject choice. Boys read hobby books and information texts while girls are more likely to read stories about people. Hence why boys prefer science subject and girls subjects such as English.
• Gendered Subject Images


  Kelly argues that science is seen as a boys' subject because: Science teachers are more likely to be men, the examples used to teach concepts often draw on boys' rather than girls interests (such as using sports balls to demonstrate the orbit of the planets), and in Science lessons, boys monopolise the apparatus and dominate the lessons.
• Gender Identities within School


  Pupils' experiences in school reinforce their gender identities, reinforcing 'hegemonic masculinity' – the dominance of a heterosexual masculine identity (Connell, 1995). This includes verbal abuse, the male gaze, double standards, and how teachers and discipline reinforce gender identities. This therefore results in segregation of the genders within school which ultimately leads to girls opting for typically feminine subjects such as English and boys opting for typically masculine subjects such as Maths.
• Leonard (2006) argues that single sex schools tend to hold less stereotypes subject images and make less traditional subject choices. She found that girls in girls' schools were more likely to take maths and science at A Levels compared to girls in mixed schools and boys in boys' schools were more likely to take English and Languages than boys from mixed schools.
• Much of the research into gender differences in subject choice has not taken into account the impact of equal opportunities policies such as GIST and WISE that encourage women into more male dominated professions. These policies have ensured female scientists visit schools; non-sexist career advice is given and even reviewed learning material in science subjects. All of these initiative have gone some way to ensure a more equal split of genders in subject choice.