Glossary
- Aggregated (or global) data
- Data which is totalled and then averaged for the whole group, giving
a simple global score. It does not take account of the range of performances
within the group.
- Biological determinism
- Belief that masculine and feminine behaviours are biologically set and
unchangeable.
- Blaming
- Trying to 'fix up' boys so that they know their behaviour is bad and
are coaxed or coerced into being 'nicer'.
- Competing resources
- When boys' programs compete for funds against other target groups, eg
girls, migrants, Indigenous students. Another aspect of the 'competing
victim' approach.
- Competing victims
- Assuming that boys and girls are in competition at school and that gains
for one must come at the expense of the other. The 'battle of the sexes'
approach often adopted by the media.
- Deficit model
- Assuming there is something missing or wrong with a person or group
that needs to be fixed up. Avoids looking at outside influences.
- Disaggregated data
- Data which is divided up according to different variables to provide
more detailed analysis than a global or aggregated score.
- Discourse
- A framework of values, ideas and ways of seeing the world embedded in
the language we use.
- Divorcing behaviour from its context
- Failing to acknowledge the structures and institutions that shape boys'
lives and relationships.
- Equalising
- Assuming that male disadvantage is equal to, just different from, female
disadvantage. The 'complementary victim' approach.
- Equity
- Equity in schooling is the equal access to and just distribution of
benefits from the education system
- Essentialising
- Claiming that there are naturally occurring, unchangeable male and female
behaviours, that 'Biology explains everything.'
- Femininities
- Different ways of being feminine, of acting out a feminine identity.
- Forcing
- Giving boys no choice about participation in a program, its content
or outcomes.
- Gender relations
- How masculinities and femininities interact.
- Gender-based harassment
- Harassment based on an individual's gender, including how their behaviour,
appearance, language and attitudes conform to dominant norms. Includes
homophobic harassment.
- Generalising
- Assuming that there is only one form of masculinity and that the experiences
of all boys and men are the same, ie 'Boys will be boys!'
- Global (or aggregated) data
- Data which is totalled and then averaged for the whole group, giving
a simple global score. It does not take account of the range of performances
within the group.
- Harassment
- Physical, verbal or social behaviour that makes an individual feel embarrassed,
frightened, hurt, angry or uncomfortable.
- Hegemony
- Dominance or superiority, hence 'hegemonic masculinity' is that most
valued masculinity which dominates other masculinities.
- Heterosexism
- The assumption that heterosexuality is superior to and dominant over
other sexualities.
- Heterosexuality
- Sexual attraction and behaviour between males and females
- Homophobia
- Fear or dislike of an individual not conforming to dominant local norms
of masculinity and femininity. Refers particularly to the hatred of homosexuals
and homosexuality, and the resulting harassment.
- Homophobic harassment
- Harassment arising from homophobia, including verbal and physical abuse,
social exclusion and violence against those perceived to be different.
- Homosexuality
- Sexual attraction and behaviour between members of one sex.
- Individualising
- Explaining behaviour as individual pathology alone, such as 'It's
just a few boys who are problems, not the kind of masculinity they practise.'
- Masculinities
- Different ways of being masculine, of acting out a masculine identity.
- Masculinity therapy
- Based on a belief that heterosexual men have been wounded by changes
in gender relations and need healing.
- Masculinity politics
- Politics concerned with masculinity and men's position in gender relations.
Two general categories have been recognised: recuperative and progressive.
- Multivariate analysis
- Analysis which examines the impact of more than one variable. It gives
a more detailed picture of how variables can combine to create stronger
or weaker impacts.
- Multiliteracies
- Skills and practices that engage new technology to blend traditional
print literacies with visual, aural, aesthetic and other design forms.
- Mysogyny
- Fear or hatred of women, especially of individuals who don't conform
to dominant local norms of femininity, and the harassment which results.
- Overall Position (OP)
- A student's rank order position from 1 (highest) to 25 (lowest) based
on overall achievement in Board subjects as approved by the Queensland
Studies Authority (QSA) and used for selection into tertiary study.
- Patriarchy
- The dominance of masculinity over femininity.
- Progressive masculinity politics
- A pro-feminist stance seeking to recognise diverse masculinities and
change gender relations to achieve equality.
- Recuperative masculinity politics
- An anti-feminist stance aimed at recovering or reinstating particular
traditional notions of masculinity and unequal gender relations.
- Sex-based harassment
- When a person is harassed because of the way they live their gender
and sexuality. Often unrecognised, trivialised or accepted as teasing,
sex-based harassment can include verbal and physical abuse, social exclusion
and other forms of emotional trauma. (Includes sexist harassment, sexual
harassment.)
- Sexism
- Assumptions about an individual's abilities and worth based on their
sex. The valuing of males and masculinities above females and femininities.
- Sexist harassment
- Harassment based on assumptions about an individual's worth and abilities
based on their sex. For example, a woman may be considered inferior because
she is a woman; a man may be harassed for participating in an activity
designated as 'female'.
- Sexual harassment
- Harassment related to an individual's sexuality. May include comments
on relationships or sexual behaviours, and unwanted sexual attention,
propositions or physical contact.
- Socioeconomic status
- A measure of social and economic standing including occupational, educational
and income levels.
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