Gender and School Exclusion: What Hidden Biases Reveal About Inclusion
Why are some students more likely to be excluded from school, and what does gender have to do with it?
Dr Matthew Carlile’s research on permanent exclusions in an urban local authority shines a light on how assumptions about gender shape the way schools respond to behaviour, vulnerability and success. Drawing on years of participant observation, the study reveals that exclusion decisions often reflect institutional sexism as much as individual actions.
When Behaviour Becomes ‘Gendered’
Teachers and school leaders often see boys as naturally disruptive and girls as ‘troublesome’ when they don’t conform to expectations. A girl showing anger or confidence might be labelled ‘aggressive’, while a boy acting out may be excused as ‘normal’. These subtle biases can influence whether a pupil is supported or permanently excluded.
As Dr Carlile’s case studies show, the kinds of labels professionals used behind closed doors - such as ‘big abusive girl’ or ‘vulnerable boy’ - reveal not only how students are perceived, but how schools imagine what it means to be a ‘proper’ girl or boy.
The Bigger Picture: Gender, Class and Violence
The research highlights how gender intersects with class, ethnicity and social context.
Girls in single-sex schools were sometimes steered into caring or beauty-based courses, while boys were channelled toward construction or public service, reinforcing old class divisions.
Many exclusion cases took place against a backdrop of family or community stress, showing how structural inequality and unmet needs can surface as conflict or harm in school life.
These patterns suggest that exclusion is rarely just about discipline: it can also reveal or exacerbate social norms around gender, power and respectability.
Moving Forward
Some schools in the study were beginning to tackle these biases through reflective practice, peer group conversations and self-advocacy programmes. By helping staff question gendered assumptions and by giving students safe spaces to understand and talk about the complexities of identity, schools can move towards reducing exclusions and create a more equitable culture.
Why It Matters
A permanent exclusion could be understood as a crystallising moment, when everything has gone wrong. It should be a an opportunity to ask ourselves deeper questions about fairness and belonging. Understanding how gender shapes the journey to exclusion helps educators reimagine inclusion as something more than policy: it becomes a practice of empathy, reflection and change.
We often get asked: all this is fair enough, but what are we supposed to do when a student’s behaviour is disrupting the learning of the class, or making an inexperienced teacher’s work very difficult? Well: let’s start with preventing exclusion first, by making sure our curriculum and our relationships are compassionate and inclusive. And once we’ve done that, if a student is exhibiting the fact that school feels like an impossible place to stay emotionally regulated - let’s talk creatively and without judgment about where and how they might be able to get their needs met within the parameters of the resources available to us.