Whos Smarter? Boys or Girls?!

Who’s Smarter? Boys or Girls?! brain image An age old debate that has gone on for years! But answer is there a reason? Is it genetic? Is it down to how much attention we pay or how hard we try? Some people also believe the disparities occur because they believe that boys and girls all learn in different ways. http://www.preaching.com/resources/articles/11677889 https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/219053/sfr18-2011v5.xls this link is to a series of tables showing Key Stage 2 results between 2007-2011 that show consistently that girls have a higher achievement rate than boys. There is a lot more Gender disparity in other regions around world, a lot of the results are frightening! http://en.unesco.org/gem-report/gender_data2015/  this link shows the differences in 3 education sectors across 4 different regions around the world. Lots of reports have been written to say that boys are falling behind girls some say this is happening as young as the age of 5! Can this be true? http://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/211069/Boys-are-falling-behind-girls-at-school-by-the-age-of-seven A lot of the reports found that money plays a big part in education and the disparities as well and that students from poorer families do not fare as well as the students from richer families.  http://www.telegraph.co.uk/men/thinking-man/11705302/Boys-left-behind-girls-at-school-from-just-age-five.html As you can see from the reports in the links girls are consistently ahead of boys when it comes to achievement but why is this? We have already looked at reports as to the differences and that some of these suggest that money plays a part in the differences seen while others suggest that it’s the fact that boys and girls learn differently. A BBC  report http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/parents/learning_development_girls_boys/ found that girls and boys brains are not that different in the way they learn but that boys and girls develop different characteristics and these are what help them learn different skills quicker and can cause the disparities. This report also says that when it gets to students taking their GCSE’s the coursework that is involved helps create the disparity of girls getting higher grades as it claims that they prefer the continuous marking scheme that comes with completing coursework.

Masculinity

When you think of Men and Masculinity what springs to mind? Is it a well groomed smart dressed business man? Or maybe a rugged bearded builder sat drinking tea wolf whistling women as they walk by? Masculinity and the way people think about it and the way men act has changed drastically over the years from men being the ones who go out and earn the family wage and their wives staying at home to look after the children to now women are the ones going out working and men are staying at home to raise the family. There are many different articles and papers that have been written about the changing roles in the UK http://www.open.edu/openlearn/body-mind/proper-men-proper-women-gender-roles-contemporary-uk-society# this link is just to one of them.

This Picture shows a series of words that are commonly associated with masculinity and how men think they should be to be classed as a man.  ‘Strong, Confident & Tough are just a few words linked with being a man.

http://feministing.com/2015/03/19/remembering-why-redefining-masculinity-is-important/

Masculinity has evolved and changed over the years. Men have gone from being the main bread winners and the ones out working to provide for their families to some men now taking on the role of home maker and stay at home parent.

                                                                                                                                             https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6vb4yd3Ljxg

Many men are now starting question the ideals of masculinity and what it means. It is an ever changing and evolving concept that has gone from men drinking beer and doing diy to working out 5 times a week and taking a massive pride in their appearance.

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/mar/01/how-to-be-a-man-in-2015

Men are now even taking such pride in their appearances that they are wearing Guyliner, having manicures and carrying Man bags. It has been reported that women find metrosexual men more attractive.

http://www.hindustantimes.com/sex-and-relationships/it-turns-out-women-find-metrosexual-guys-most-desirable/story-iAFMTipa0ssGhVtnReexQP.html

Mr & Mrs - Gender inequality

Mr & Mrs - Gender inequality today!

Gender inequality can stem from a range of places. The male and female genitals and the difference between them being just a biological one! Language is another way in which gender inequality can be found today. One of the biggest taboo words in the English language is the C-word, this word is a description for the vagina and also an emasculating term for a male. It can also be found in other languages to as they have masculine and feminine nouns.

Feminists have developed lots of different theories about gender inequality. Radical feminists such as Valerie Bryson (1999) as cited in Haramlambos and Holborn (2008) see’s women as an oppressed group and that men are the oppressors. Some Radical feminists see the family as the biggest oppressor to women in a modern society. Shulamith Firestone (1972) is another radical feminist, she believes that oppression in women has originated from their biology because they have given birth. Firestone having this belief however is unusual as radical feminists usually believe that it is the male biology that is the problem. (Haramlambos & Holborn, 2008, P100-101,104-105)

Gender inequality is instilled in children from birth. With the notion that Little Girls like pink and Little Boys want Blue. It is also instilled by the family as men are usually seen as the husband and main breadwinner within and the family and women as the mothers and homemakers. Children that grow up in this type of environment tend to accept this as the norm and will follow this structure and replicate it within their own family model as they grow older. Some children will deviate from this model and will rebel against the norm and want to play with toys and dress in clothes that are meant to be for the opposite sex. Primary socialisation occurs at home and where gender stereotypes and inequalities can first happen. As we grow and start to attend school and form a social circle we then become secondary socialised. It is within this group we develop our own personalities but if we do not conform to the norms we risk becoming ostracised and outcast from the group therefore instilling even more the gender inequalities that could already have appeared.

https://www.boundless.com/sociology/textbooks/boundless-sociology-textbook/gender-stratification-and-inequality-11/gender-and-socialization-86/childhood-socialization-500-2094/