Gender, education and the new millennium

This chapter will focus on gender equity issues in education. It has only been relatively recently that gender has come under scrutiny in British sociology of education. Until the 1970s the bias was towards the analysis of class differentials of educational achievement. This led to a simplification of the issues but a growing amount of historical and sociological research has now been published, much of which points to the fact that boys and girls experience schooling differently. At the same time, it is important not to ignore the differences that exist among groups. The interacting dynamics of class, gender and ‘race’ relations are crucial, as are sexuality, disability and individual biographies. So, the chapter begins with a discussion of historical perspectives on gender and education, before moving on to relate the theoretical understandings of Chapter 1 to more recent concerns, considered in their policy context.