ABSTRACT
Historically the experience of women shows a pattern of educational underachievement. Their employment outside the home tends to have been predominantly in low-status jobs often seen by them as a stop-gap, or in the kinds of work which emphasise service: that is, which draw on the skills and abilities traditionally associated with women’s domestic roles. There is a continuing tendency to undervalue the experience women gain at home and at work, with a corresponding tendency in women themselves to devalue the skills and abilities they have acquired. Many women do use and develop their potential by returning to work, education or training, or by moving into more demanding areas of employment, but such moves are often fraught with difficulties. Equally, many women are demotivated in the world of employment as far as seeking training or qualifications is concerned. A study by Sanders, Fuller, and Lobley, Emerging Issues in the Utilisation of NVQs, Report No.5, found that female unskilled work operatives gave the following reasons for not seeking training or qualifications:
• lack of self-confidence • low job expectations • deference to husband’s career • anxiety about extra responsibility • satisfaction with current job performance.
