Girls Issues in UK Schools - Essay Example

Girls’ Issues in UK Schools Girls’ Issues in UK Schools The problem of marginalization within the scenario of education forces the girl students to feel alienated within school environment. One can see that this problem hinders girls from entering the workforce in future and to have upward mobility in the social ladder. Besides, this is a serious problem in the modern society of UK because gender identity must not determine one’s value. When girl students are forced to face marginalization, they will show the tendency to act like boys. Still, this tendency cannot help the girl students because they will be forced to face stereotyping. Thesis statement: The critical examination of some of the issues experienced by girls in UK schools proves that social class, family (cultural) background, academic performance, stereotyping, and lack of sex education result in identity crisis among girls in general. One can see that social class is an important factor which determines a student’s acceptability within a class room environment. Read (2011, p.1) states that, ‘However such desired characteristics are also those considered to characterise the ‘popular girl’ at school- a position of power and influence amongst girls’ peers’. If a girl student happens to be from the lower layers of the society, there is high chance for the problems related to her social class. Reay (2001, p.153) states that, ‘While peer group discourses constructed girls as harder working, more mature and more socially skilled, still the boys and a significant number of the girls adhered to the view that it is better being a boy’. Besides, girl students may try to hide their social status but this may lead them towards stress and related emotional problems in general. Similarly, cultural background determines a girl student’s socialization and acceptance within her public domain. From a different angle of view, boy students can resist the influence of their cultural and social backgrounds because they have enough freedom. Renold (2001, p.577) states that, ‘The relative ‘high achievement’ of girls has often been perceived as unproblematic and thus neglected, or achieved at the expense of boys’. On the other side, girl students cannot withstand the pressure from their public domains. Besides, one’s cultural background determines one’s successful interaction with others. Still, this problem can be easily solved in a multicultural society like UK. From a different angle of view, a girl student’s social class and cultural background deeply influences her academic performance. Fuller, Turbin, & Johnston (2013, p.499) state that, ‘In the UK and other industrialised countries, there are longstanding concerns about the under-representation of females in computing and information technology (IT) courses and careers (Charles and Bradley 2006)’. If a girl student is from a poor family with less socialization and differences in cultural characteristics, there is high scope for poor academic performance. Pomerantz & Raby (2011, p.549) state that, ‘They are said to be outperforming boys, from high school exams to university entrance rates to professional accreditation’. Besides, the importance given to physical features, especially skin colour, academic performance is totally ignored. Francis (2000, p. 35) states that, ‘This dualistic allocation carries a hierarchy in terms of subject status: ‘the sciences’ are associated with high-status traits such as rationality and objectivity, while ‘the arts’ are associated with emotionality and subjectivity’. So, the society, especially the experts within the educational sector must try to create awareness among the student community that academic performance is importance for a student, disregarding their sexual identity or physical features. One can see that there is no role model within the current educational system for a girl student to follow. Ali (2003, p. 269) states that, ‘De Beauvoir’s insistence that we understand gendering as ‘becoming’ has renewed relevance in recent years as feminists have critiqued the all-embracing category ‘woman’ of early second wave feminism and attempted to theorise how we become ‘women’-plural’. If she tries to go beyond the limits of this problem, she will become the victim of stereotyping. For instance, she will be evaluated as a person who is trying to act like a boy. Archer L, Halsall A, & Hollingworth S (2007, p. 549) state that, ‘We illustrate how the girls’ attempts at resistance and transgression were constrained by gender- and class- based discourses around moral worth, as girls struggled to be recognized as ‘good underneath’ and attempted to ‘change’ over the course of the project and their final year/s of schooling (to become good)’. This is a serious problem within the present educational system in UK because stereotyping crushes the self-confidence of girl students in general. On the other side, less importance is given to sex education within the educational system in UK and this limits the active participation of girl students. Lall, (2007, p. 219) states that, ‘Many teenage girls who become pregnant decide to leave the formal education system due to lack of support’. For instance, thousands of girl students face the problem of unwanted pregnancy during their high school years. If they decide to continue with their pregnancy, they cannot complete their education. Osler (2006, p.571) states that, ‘Over a five year period from 1995-1999, over 10,000 secondary school-aged girls were permanently excluded from schools as the result of disciplinary procedures’. If they are exposed to proper sex education they will not be forced to face the problem of teenage pregnancy and related problems. Summing up, girl students are totally exposed to a number of problems within the present educational system in UK. Within this scenario, social class and cultural background determines the proper socialization and performance within class room environment. When a girl student is forced to face problems within her school environment, the same will affect her academic performance. If she tries to outperform others by adopting certain ideas, she will be stereotyped as a person who is trying to discard her sexual identity. This cannot be tolerated because one’s sexual identity is unimportant within the context of education. Besides, lack of sex education results in unwanted pregnancy and related problems among the girl student community within the educational system in UK. In short, it is utmost important to inculcate innovation within the present educational system because the same allows less space for girl students in general. 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