The analysis of the data on power relations between the students, and between the students and the science taught, provided insights into the performance of boys and girls and the constructions of gendering. In this study, the main constructions of gender were those of the hegemonic 'Machismo Masculinity' and. Without aiming for generalization, this case study concludes that contexts are critical in shaping the performances of masculinity and femininity, which in turn define the constructions of gender.
The data in this thesis was collected in accordance with the research ethics guidelines provided by the Faculty of Education.
BACKGROUND AND INTRODUCTION TO THE STUDY
- INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND
- PURPOSE
- RATIONALE
- THEORETICAL AND CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK
- RESEARCH QUESTION
- THE RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODOLOGY
- THE RESEARCH METHOD AND THE RESEARCH INSTRUMENTS
- THE SAMPLE
- CONSENT AND ETHICAL ISSUES
- LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY
- STRUCTURE OF THE DISSERTATION
- CONCLUSION
He focused on the girls and seemed oblivious to the disturbing behavior of most of the boys. Most of the girls were attentive and engaged in the lesson, while others sat quietly. In this way, the occupation of the girls' space was controlled by the majority of boys.
In this study, most girls and boys reproduced traditional forms of gender.
A REVIEW OF LITERATURE AND THEORETICAL
INTRODUCTION
The purpose of this study was to investigate the learners' gender constructions in a grade 10 Physical Sciences classroom, by examining the researchable power relations. It is important to understand whether and how these discourses legitimize discursive gender practices and how contexts contribute to the formation of masculinity and femininity. Using a feminist theoretical orientation, I draw on poststructural theories to problematize gender in order to examine the discourses of power in classrooms.
RESEARCH ON GENDER ISSUES IN SOUTH AFRICA
They have identified significant gaps, firstly, in research on gender constructions at the school level and secondly, with the development of educational policies that focus only on girls' access and removing barriers to education. However, gender and development focused on the relationship between men and women and all the social, economic, political and political influence on both men and women. An important gap in the research of this period was the focus on the power possessed by women as subjects of ever-changing power.
Recent South African research within the poststructuralist framework includes the work of Dheevia Bhana (2002) on the construction of masculinities and femininities and how the discourses of early schooling inscribed gender identities.
THEORISING GENDER
- THE DYNAMICS OF POWER
- GENDER AS A PERFORMANCE
- CONSTRUCTIONS OF MASCULINITIES AND FEMININITIES
Francine Deutsch (2007, pp.107-108) draws our attention to the concept of 'doing gender' because it can unintentionally perpetuate the idea that the gender system is oppressive. This implies an understanding of how contexts, such as the dynamics of the classroom space, operate in the construction of masculinity and femininity. Implicit in the concept of dominant masculinity is subordination to other masculinities (Gilbert & Gilbert, 1998, pp. 50-51).
There have been significant shifts in the construction of femininity, expanding the general understanding of acceptable behavior.
GENDER IN SCHOOLS
- GENDERED SPACE
- MASCULINITIES AND FEMININITIES IN SCHOOLS
- GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE IN SCHOOLS
- GENDER- BASED VIOLENCE IN SOUTH AFRICAN SCHOOLS
- GENDER AND THE NATURE OF SCHOOL SCIENCE
Paechter (1998, p. 10) extends the control of space to the concept of "gaze" to which the "Other" is subject. Paechter (1998, p.10) adds that schools as institutions expose students to "the gaze" in a way that causes their bodies to stand in the way of their education. Students still view scientific claims as absolute, theories as unproblematic reflections of the "truths" of nature, and science as an individual enterprise separate from their lives (Letts, 2001, p.267; Murphy & Whitelegg, 2006, p.282 ).
Walkerdine (1990, p.211) claims that one of the obstacles for girls to learn science is its organizational nature.
POSTSTRUCTURAL FEMINISM
- SOCIAL CONSTRUCTIONIST THEORY
- DEFINING „DISCOURSE‟
Much of the school curriculum is presented in a depersonalized, abstracted form that appeals to an emotionally reserved type of person, usually male, who has developed a need to control, abstract, and suppress ambiguity (Harding, 1995, p. 11. Letts, 2001, p. 262). Several terms such as "discourse", "deconstruction", "subjectivity" and "regimes of truth" have been used by feminists to examine the gendered nature of educational interactions (Dillabough, 2001, p.12). Following Foucault, Dillabough (2001, p.18) argues that "a regime of truth" about gender identity, which people understand to be historically continuous and unitary, is always present in classrooms.
In this sense, femininity and masculinity are simply performed in honor of the discourses that construct them in schools. Because of its constant awareness of the specificity of contextualized meaning, poststructuralism may have limited theoretical use for those who seek to generalize its meaning to their particular situations. Therefore, in this study I acknowledge the contextualized nature of the findings without generalizing them to other contexts.
In contrast, social constructionism deals with difference and contradiction by focusing on the nuances and micro aspects of local interactions (Paechter, 2001, p. 41). Social constructionists are also concerned with the ways in which different aspects of social identity; for example race, gender, social class, age and sexuality; they influence interactions and individual constructions of gender (Dillabough, 2001, p. 21). Discourses can be seen as socially organized frameworks of meaning that define categories and determine what can be said and done (Paechter, 2001, p. 44).
I use the example of the discourse of the "good, quiet" girl, which is instantiated in the widespread belief that girls are less noisy than boys. This discourse also includes the view of the "normal" girl who controls the way she uses her body by drawing attention to cases of deviance, such as the use of the terms "tomboy and abnormal" (Paechter, 2001, p. . 45).
CONCLUSION
Poststructuralist theories are most useful in understanding asymmetrical power relations because they allow for multidimensional perspectives on power (Foucault, 1980, p.18). In this study I use the term 'discourse' to refer to socially organized meaning frameworks, such as power. In this way, power relations become useful, as a convenient way to talk about the discourse of power.
Therefore, the discourse of power in this study is researchable as power relations, as they are conducted in the 10th grade of Physical Sciences.
RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODOLOGY
- INTRODUCTION
- THE RESEARCH DESIGN: BEING GUIDED BY POSTSTRUCTURALISM
- A QUALITATIVE RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
- A FOCUS ON THE PARTICIPANTS
- THE SAMPLE
- GAINING ACCESS AND OBTAINING CONSENT
- ETHICAL DILEMMAS: ISSUES OF PRIVACY AND CONFIDENTIALITY
- THE RESEARCH METHOD
- A CASE STUDY OF THE PHYSICAL SCIENCES CLASSROOM
- THE RESEARCH METHODS AND INSTRUMENTS
- VALIDITY AND RELIABILITY
- ENSURING VALIDITY
- ENSURING RELIABILITY
- INTERVIEWS: VALIDITY AND RELIABILITY
- OBSERVATIONS: VALIDITY AND RELIABILITY
- TRIANGULATION
- CONCLUSION
Poststructural feminist research also legitimizes the empowerment of the oppressed and invisible groups (Cohen et al., 2000, p.35). The selection of the girls included those who were active participants in the class as well as those who were not. The period of data collection was not long enough to include interviews with the teacher.
The implication for my research was that the management of the school did not differ significantly, and therefore affected my access to the learners. The purpose of the study as well as the data that had to be collected and how it would be affected were explained to the learners. A case study method was the most suitable for my research because it enabled an understanding and interpretation of the participants' world (Cohen et al., 2000, p.182).
The data generated from the observation form helped to reshape and refine the questions in the semi-structured interview forms. The interviews were audiotaped and extensive notes were taken with the participants' permission. It is also about honesty, depth, richness and extent of data, as well as the extent of triangulation (Cohen et al., 2000, p.106).
A pilot of the observation schedule ensured that the categories were appropriate, exhaustive, discrete and unambiguous, focusing on the research question. To address this, I triangulated the data from the observations with that from the interviews.
DATA PRESENTATION AND ANALYSIS
INTRODUCTION
THE DATA COLLECTED
- CLASSROOM SPACE AND THE PERFORMANCE OF GENDER
- LEARNER INTERACTIONS AND „DOING GENDER‟
- PHYSICAL SCIENCES AS A DISCOURSE OF POWER
While the girls occupied the front of the class and the boys sat in the back, some boys sat next to the girls. Noticeably, the girls occupied the front of the classroom under the constant gaze of both the boys and the teacher. From here they were engaged in lessons beyond the physical reach of boys.
In interviews with students, it was clear to both boys and girls why they preferred certain areas of the classroom. Mdu's answer illustrated what the boys think about the obedience of the girls in the class, especially Fr. In this way, the boys' bodies created their spaces and the girls' spaces.
In this way, the girls' bodies were constituted and limited by space. Although most of the boys controlled the girls' use of space, the girls used the front of the classroom to participate in the lessons. The teacher occupied the front of the classroom and interacted mainly with the girls, while appearing oblivious to the disturbances from the boys.
Both boys and girls stated that the teacher had to stand at the front of the classroom so he could teach. The girls who were committed to learning were disadvantaged by the boys' disruptive behavior.
SYNTHESIS AND INSIGHTS: GENDERED PERFORMANCES IN THE PHYSICAL
- BODIES IN SPACE: THE PERFORMANCE OF „MACHISMO
- LEARNER INTERACTIONS AND DOING GENDER
- PHYSICAL SCIENCES AS A DISCOURSE OF POWER: THE „OTHERING‟ OF BOYS
- THE NORMALISING DISCOURSE OF SCHOOL SCIENCE
- THE IGNOMINY OF „TRYING HARD‟
- PHYSICAL SCIENCES AS ALLURING
CONCLUSION
In this Chapter I have discussed and analyzed the findings of the data within the theoretical framework of the study. In the next Chapter, I present a synthesis of the conclusions of the study, followed by a discussion of the implications for practice as well as the limitations of the study.
SYNTHESIS AND CONCLUSIONS
- INTRODUCTION
- CONCLUSIONS FROM THE STUDY
- CONTESTED SPACES
- CONSTRUCTIONS OF GENDER
- PHYSICAL SCIENCES AS A DISCOURSE OF POWER
- IMPLICATIONS FOR CHANGED PRACTICES
- GENDERED BEHAVIOUR CAN BE CHANGED
- GENDER IN SCHOOLS: TOWARDS A GENDER-INCLUSIVE CURRICULUM
- SCHOOL SCIENCE NEEDS TO BE MORE RELEVANT
- CONCLUSION
In performing hegemonic masculinity, these boys used the classroom space to exercise their power and control over the girls. The use of space was implicated in the construction of “yielding/resistant femininity” and relational “macho masculinity”. These guys existed on the fringes and were shut out of shows by the dominant guys.
Along with the teacher-centered lessons, the masculinist science collaborated in the construction of the hegemonic masculinity and emphasized femininity that disempowered both boys and girls. In the construction of their gender, the boys and girls engaged in performances that were a reproduction of some of the meanings already established in society. This conceptualization leaves room for activism because it recognizes the possibility of intervening in the politics of masculinity to promote masculinities that are more peaceful and harmonious (Reay, 2001, p.128).
In the development of modern science, gender constructs interacted with social elements to establish its dominant values, placing science in a masculine context (Letts, 2001, p.261). Girls in a 10th grade Physical Science class studied engaged in performances of compliance and resistance as they constructed Compliant/Resistant Femininity. However, most boys engaged in the performance of sexually aggressive, misogynist, and heterosexual Machismo Masculinity, excluding boys who performed compliant masculinity at the margins.
Masculinities and femininities and secondary schooling: The case for a gender analysis in the postmodern condition. Girls and boys in the early years: Gender in an African Catholic primary school in Marianhill, Durban.
