Introduction
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During this case study I am going to investigate whether labeling theory or class theory is more to blame for the fact that only a small percentage of girls are encouraged to do physics at A-level. Furthermore, it is quite frequently stated that the only science subject that girls should study is biology because it is deemed the most feminine of all the science subjects. Furthermore, it has been found that this is not only a popular belief among society, but it has negatively affected girls decisions when it comes to studying science subjects after secondary school; because when researched in ‘2011 it was found that physics was the fourth most popular subject for A-level among boys in English Schools but for girls the subject languished in 19th place’ (Knight, 2012). Moreover, through research it has been discovered that a higher percentage of girls go on to do physics at A-level if they come from a single sex school compared to the amount of girls that are sent on to do physics at A-level that come from co-ed schools. If it wasn’t for society’s belief in certain conventions for example, that girls can’t pursue an education in science subjects, but the physics strand in particular. Also, it is the way that education influences students into having a specific mind-set because it is not just girls who are made to think that physics is a more masculine subject it is also boys that have this mind-set because they are taught that way so therefore they don’t know any different.
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