ABSTRACT
The analysis revealed shifting gender differences over time and a consequent change in the focus of concern. In the 1970s, a major concern was the limited opportunities available to girls in certain subjects (predominately the hard sciences). More recently the focus of attention has switched to boys, who are now seen as performing less well than girls generally and particularly in the secondary sector. However, reviews of the apparent ‘underperformance’ of boys point out that this phenomenon is not new but that previously it had been concealed from the public by the adjustment of 11-plus test results in order to obtain equal numbers of boys and girls in grammar schools. This practice continued in parts of the UK up until the 1980s.
