Outline and discuss the view that the influence of male culture disadvantages boys in education.

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Sociology Essay

Outline and discuss the view that the influence of male culture disadvantages boys in education.

Until the late 1980’s, most sociological literature focused on the underachievement of girls. Girls were less likely to pursue A levels and consequently to enter higher education. However, in the early 1990’s, it was argued that girls had begun to outperform boys at most levels of the education system. The main sociological focus today therefore is on the underachievement of boys.

Epstein et al. (1999) state that boy’s underachievement is not something new, but in the past was not a worrying trend for two reasons: working-class boys used to move easily into jobs without good qualifications in the days when sons followed fathers into mines, factories, etc. And the structural and cultural barriers preventing female’s access to high-status jobs and the pressure on women to become wives and mothers, etc. meant that males always achieved better paid jobs in the long run. However, today Epstein notes that governments are anxious about large numbers of unemployed young men because they are a potential threat to social order.

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There are many reasons why boys are under-achieving in education. In some schools, the extent of boys’ underachievement has become so serious that twice as many girls are getting five GCSE’s grades A-C. It is estimated that by the age of 16, nearly 40% of boys are ‘lost’ to education. Some sociologists have suggested that the fault lies with teachers. Studies of classroom interaction and the relationship between pupils and teachers suggest that teachers are not as strict with boys as with girls. It is claimed that teachers tend to have lower expectations of boys, e.g. they expect work ...

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