This is a sophisticated monograph focussing on attainment at the end of secondary/high school education (and the interface with tertiary education). It combines re-analysis of secondary literature (including official statistics, institutional histories, interview data) and analysis of qualitative and quantitative primary research using descriptive and inferential statistics, value-added analysis and grounded theory. The results show the significance and weakness of both the mid-twentieth century classic analyses of social class and the late-twentieth century feminist approaches. It shows how a joint consideration of social issues, in particular of gender and social stratification, produce a powerful model for explaining attainment with important implications for policy on boys' underachievement and participation in higher education.

Author Biography

Nigel Kettley is Junior Research Fellow and director of Studies at Wolfson College and Research Associate at the Faculty of Education, Cambridge University, UK.