Skills for Study Level 2 Teacher's Book - Cambridge University Press

Passage cGender gap in higher educationstudent numbers is reversing tofavour women.Significant negative gender gapsstill exist for women in academia.Across European Union mennow account for only 41% ofuniversity graduates (EuropeanCommission, 2009).Only 18% of senior professorsin Europe are female (EuropeanCommission, 2009, p.75).1dSuggested answers1 Parity more or less exists in terms of overall numbers – if anything it favourswomen. However, it should be remembered that the data here is mainly from theOECD and EC, so it is based heavily on European / industrialized nations. In termsof academic staff positions, there is still disparity to the disadvantage of women.2 Most predictions estimate that, in terms of student enrolments / graduations,women will increasingly outnumber men over the next few decades.3 Male students becoming marginalized in higher education overall; femalestudents are still heavily outnumbered on ‘masculine’ courses in naturalsciences and engineering; female academic staff severely under-represented.1eAnswersaClaims: There is persistent gender inequality in academic leadership.There has been relatively little data about this until recently.Support: 90% of Commonwealth universities are headed by men (Singh, 2008).In 65% of Commonwealth countries, ALL universities are headed by men.bClaims: Significant gender segregation between different academic staff levels.Support: Europe in 2006: only 44% of new Grade C academic staff are female;Grade B only 36%; Grade A (senior) only 18%.In 2007, only 13% of universities in the EU were headed by women.1fSuggested answersFemale students increasingly outnumber males at all levels.Continuing gender differences in subject type.Continuing gender gap in numbers of senior staff.1g Student discussion1h Group discussionSuggested answers1 Only very few women become heads of universities in either the EU orCommonwealth nations.2 Depends on student’s opinion. However, a suggested answer is that thoughwomen are still disadvantaged in terms of academic staff appointments andare under-represented on certain types of course, it would be incorrect to saythat all the disparities favour men: a significant and growing number of allstudents graduating with degrees are now women.Unit 1 Part B ∙ Understanding written information 16