Gender inequalities and private schooling

This article published on the 19^th of July addresses the gender inequality within the society in regards to the education of boys against girls. This article claims parents are more willing to support their sons in attending elite boy schools than daughters. An academic who has surveyed one thousand five hundred parents in relation to school choices has noted there was more anxiety about which schools their sons would attend than daughters. There is concern over the fact that gender inequalities are still noticeable present within today’s society and parents should give as much attention towards both genders. As a response to these inequalities, there are now an ‘extra 10 per cent more private school spots for girls than boys’, however, I question whether this is helping the situation or, in fact, making it worse.

By increasing the percentage of private school spots for girls, there is now an even greater enrolment pressure placed upon boys who compete to receive places within these prestige schools. The article addresses similar cases of those throughout Australia including New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia and Queensland who claim parents place names down in private schools from as early as the birth of their sons in hopes of receiving a place. Even then not all are accepted into the private schooling. Rohan Brown, deputy principal of Melbourne’s Trinity Grammar, states it is even common for parents who are willing to pay a mass of donations in order to admit their sons into the schools. However, such attention isn’t drawn in regards to admitting daughters into private schools. This relates back to McIntosh’s reading and in particular, her perspectives on male privilege within society.

In the reading she highlights the naivety of those who are privileged and how although they are willing to admit others are at a disadvantage, they aren’t willing to accept they are over privileged. (McIntosh, 1988, pp. 1) Similarly, the article addresses how parents are unwilling to accept they are granting their sons a greater advantage over daughters, as opposed to accepting they are less troubled by sending their daughters into better schooling. However, in saying this, I do not agree with her argument that the privileged group (in this case the males) has all advantage and dominance over the disadvantaged (females) group due to recent circumstances. As a response to females being at a disadvantage, we lower standards for them to enrol into private schooling. This in return has increased pressure amongst males to attend these schools.

Instead of focusing on inequalities between students due to their gender, we should focus on each student as an individual. Research and studies of student NAPLAN results have proven gender does not account towards the educational achievements of students. So why are parents more anxious over admitting their sons into private schools over daughters? It is rather naïve to suggest that gender inequalities do not exist simply because it has been proven they do not ‘exist’. Society’s attitudes towards the stereotyping of genders have placed individuals in hierarchical positions; this is also the case whether it is in regards to gender, background, language, or any other factors. We should assess the enrolment of a student into a private school through their overall student performance rather than their gender.

Reference List:

http://www.news.com.au/lifestyle/parenting/parents-more-focused-on-boys-education-than-girls-experts/story-fnet085v-1226682195444

McIntosh, P. (1992) White Privilege and Male Privilege: A personal account of

coming to see correspondences through work in women’s studies, In M.

Andersen & P. H. Collins (eds), Race, Class, and Gender: An anthology.

Belmont, CA, Wadsworth Publishing.