Conclusion
In conclusion, even though most people believe that it is socially unacceptable for girls to want to do physics at A-level because they believe that it is a subject better suited to boys because of it supposedly masculine qualities; it has been proven that of all the children that chose to do STEM subjects at A-level ‘females achieved higher A*- C combined grades compared to males in all STEM subjects in 2012’ (Botcherby & Buckner, 2012). It could be interpreted that it is the way that society labels people that affects education to the point where female pupils are discouraged from choosing to do physics at A-level because they have labelled it as being inappropriate or socially unacceptable for girls to choose to do any other science subject except for biology. However, it could also be interpreted that it is a female’s social status that determines whether it is acceptable for her to choose to do physics at A-level or whether it is deemed inappropriate. Also, research shows that a higher majority of girls that come from independent schools are allowed and even encouraged to choose to do physics at A-level.
Overall, I think it is a mixture of both labeling theory and social class that affects how many females are entered into physics at A-level because research shows that a lot of maintained schools send a low percentage of girls forward to do physics at A-level because society has labelled it as socially unacceptable for girl to be openly choosing to do physics at A-level so therefore, if society chose not to label it as being a social taboo then girls would feel more confident about wanting to choose to do physics at A-level. However, it also depends on what social class they belong to because there is sufficient amount of data to suggest a higher percentage of all girls that are entered into doing physics at A-level come from independent single sex schools or independent co-ed schools. It could be interpreted that this result is because their parents have enough finances to not only send them to the best of schools that money can afford, but they can also afford to spend money on extra tutors for their children if they need extra tuition for their lessons.
Word count: 1,723
Overall, I think it is a mixture of both labeling theory and social class that affects how many females are entered into physics at A-level because research shows that a lot of maintained schools send a low percentage of girls forward to do physics at A-level because society has labelled it as socially unacceptable for girl to be openly choosing to do physics at A-level so therefore, if society chose not to label it as being a social taboo then girls would feel more confident about wanting to choose to do physics at A-level. However, it also depends on what social class they belong to because there is sufficient amount of data to suggest a higher percentage of all girls that are entered into doing physics at A-level come from independent single sex schools or independent co-ed schools. It could be interpreted that this result is because their parents have enough finances to not only send them to the best of schools that money can afford, but they can also afford to spend money on extra tutors for their children if they need extra tuition for their lessons.
Word count: 1,723