Just completing some Equality Act 'training' and apparently I got this question wrong...

[ChatterChattee]

Question: Statistically, men have an advantage over women in education and the workplace.

I chose 'True.'

Apparently, I was wrong. The correct answer is:

'False: Men are paid more than women in the workplace. However, girls and women now outperform men at school and university."

There are soooo many things wrong with that statement! Conflating 'an advantage,' 'being paid,' and 'outperforming,' for one thing.

That doesn't even make sense.

So, despite the fact that girls and women outperform men academically, they get paid less in the workplace? I'd say that represents a pretty obvious problem that most people would recognise as a disadvantage.

Good lord.

Who wrote this nonsense?!

That would give me the rage OP

Oh it gets worse.

It's now telling me that gender is protected characteristic...

I don't think it's been worded well but Isn't it basically just saying men have an advantage in one sector (the workplace) but not in both?

Huh??!

I'd say it's a distinct advantage to know you can underperform in education but will still stand a good chance of being paid significantly more by the time you're about 40.

Ok no excuse for that (getting the protected characteristic wrong) - not if the training's about the Equality Act.

Are people who now carry out equality training, in that role because they don't meet the intellectual or critical standards to do anything else?

Without even looking at the reasoning, the answer they give contradicts a simple yes as an answer to that question.

@ChatterChattee

Question: Statistically, men have an advantage over women in education and the workplace.

I chose 'True.'

Apparently, I was wrong. The correct answer is:

'False: Men are paid more than women in the workplace. However, girls and women now outperform men at school and university."

There are soooo many things wrong with that statement! Conflating 'an advantage,' 'being paid,' and 'outperforming,' for one thing.

You did get the question wrong.

It is asking if statistically men have an advantage in education AND the workplace.

You can only answer “true” if both are true- an advantage in education AND workplace.

But since one is false, education, you have to answer false.

You can only answer “true” if both are true- an advantage in education AND workplace.

But since one is false, education, you have to answer false.

Performing better in exams is not an "advantage". It's not like exam results are simply handed out to you. Working harder at school is not an advantage, and this is (at best) a very odd way of framing things.

They do have an advantage in education in that even if they under perform they’ll still be better paid later on.

Who is the provider of this training?

I would be fuming at this and tempted to email them if my job was safe.

@GCAcademic

You can only answer “true” if both are true- an advantage in education AND workplace.

But since one is false, education, you have to answer false.

Performing better in exams is not an "advantage". It's not like exam results are simply handed out to you. Working harder at school is not an advantage, and this is (at best) a very odd way of framing things.

What a ridiculous thing to say. So when women make up 55% of university students and are given higher grades, it is due to “hard work” but when men are paid more than women, it is not due to “hard work”?

Please. Advantage means advantage. As in who is coming out ahead. Women are statistically ahead of men in education. This is an advantage that women have today (didn’t in past but do today).

Sounds like you have a pretty shit training provider, OP. Do you know who it is?

@ProfessorInkling

They do have an advantage in education in that even if they under perform they’ll still be better paid later on.

Not really. The pay gap is due to motherhood, not education.

@GCAcademic

You can only answer “true” if both are true- an advantage in education AND workplace.

But since one is false, education, you have to answer false.

Performing better in exams is not an "advantage". It's not like exam results are simply handed out to you. Working harder at school is not an advantage, and this is (at best) a very odd way of framing things.

Yes, but lots of men seem to insist that because women do better at exams they have an 'advantage' over men.

Email the training provider and you’ll look an idiot who doesn’t know basic skills for True/False statements.

@ArabellaScott

Sounds like you have a pretty shit training provider, OP. Do you know who it is?

Yes, but I would rather not share. I am going to feed back that the wording of their questions needs work.

What a ridiculous thing to say. So when women make up 55% of university students and are given higher grades, it is due to “hard work” but when men are paid more than women, it is not due to “hard work”?

Please. Advantage means advantage. As in who is coming out ahead. Women are statistically ahead of men in education. This is an advantage that women have today (didn’t in past but do today).

Exams have an objective measure, at least, which is not the case in with how people are rewarded in the workplace. Incidentally, how do you think girls perform better in exams, if not due to hard work? Coming out with better results should advantage women, but it doesn't, as we see from the poorer pay we receive for the same roles. So, it's not actually an advantage, more a barometer of how women are disadvantaged.

So, despite the fact that girls and women outperform men academically, they get paid less in the workplace? I'd say that represents a pretty obvious problem that most people would recognise as a disadvantage.

Indeed - a double whammy - women and girls brighter(?) worker harder (?) know they have to put perform (?) - but still get paid less - a double whammy plus now it not seen as male advantage.

You couldn’t make this shit up.

Women statistically do have the advantage though. I think it’s sexist to be saying it is due to hard work, that is literally saying boys/young men are more likely to be lazy compared to girls/young women. When truth is that both sexes are equally lazy, or hard working.

It's a stupid question. The fact is that despite poorer academic performance, men are paid more than women.

Not really. The pay gap is due to motherhood, not education.

There is a significant sex pay gap in my workplace, where very few female academics actually have children.