The extent to which the ideas of certain influential, contemporary social theorists who arguably analyse selves as disembedded from social structures can contribute to the theorising of gender and education is explored in this article. We begin by considering hegemonic explanations of neo-liberal society and particularly the emphasis on…

There is a popular perception that girls' academic success means that they have taken up the kinds of gender performances in the classroom previously associated with boys. However, research into classrooms show that, amongst even the highest achieving pupils, girls are anxious about doing well and concerned about their relationships with other…