ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on gender equality in English education. Historical and sociological scholarship is mobilised to support the argument that feminism, feminist thought and a rise of female participation in education does not mean that gender issues have gone away. Mary Wollstonecraft argued for women’s access to education because: Education was a natural right for both sexes. Education would make women better wives and mothers, since it would give them the mental discipline to ensure they were not flighty or frivolous. The 1870 Education Act was a watershed in English education history. The 1944 Education Act made secondary education universal and free. The Equal Opportunities Commission, founded in 1975, now funded studies of contemporary girls’ schooling, and Arnot and colleagues were commissioned to undertake a study of the impact of changing policies and practices in secondary schools. A historical perspective shows that all children have become much more successful at state schools when offered more opportunities.
