Gender and Subject Choice

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  • Gender and Subject Choice
    • Gender Role Socialisation
      • The process of learning behavior expected of males and females in society
      • Norman (1988) notes that from an early age girls and boys are dressed differently, given different toys and encouraged to take part in different activities
      • As a result they gained different reading tastes. Murphy and Elwood (1998) found that boys read hobby/informative books whereas girls read stories, this lead them into different subjects
      • Gender Domains
        • Browne and Ross (1991) argue children's beliefs about gender domains shape their expectation of adults
        • Children are more confident in tasks they see as their domain, for example girls are understanding of feelings whereas boys want to know how things work
    • Gender Subject Images
      • Kelly argues that science is a boy's subject because; science teachers are likely to be men, examples and textbooks often draw on boys interests and boys monopolize apparatus
      • Cooley argues computer science is a boy's subjects because; it involves working with machines and the way it is taught puts girls off
      • Single Sex Schooling - Less stereotypical vies of subject so the students make less traditional choices
        • Leanord (2006) found that compared with a mixed school, in an all-girls school they were more likely to take maths and science
    • Gender Identity and Peer Pressure
      • Our peers can influence subject choice because people don't want to be ridiculed for taking a (for example) feminine subject when you are a boy
      • Dewar (1990) found that girls who take sports are often labeled as lesbians or butch
    • Gendered Career Options
      • Jobs tend to be stereotyped as men's or women's, women's jobs tend top be similar to childcare and nursing
      • For example boys believe nursery nurses are only women so will less likely take a course in childcare

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