Following on from the thread about the public girls' school head saying girls need to have realistic expectations, I've found an article about more of her opinions:
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/ed...t-1821741.html

Apparently she thinks it's ok for women to care about their physical appearance and that doesn't undermine being intelligent or even being a feminist. You can be a feminist and still wear gucci, get a designer hair style and put make up on every day. Hm.

I recall Sarahkka complaining that the advice about having realistic expectations didn't get given to boys too. How about this one then?!

I'd love to see all those clever academic men working out, waxing their body hair, getting their kit off for the ladies etc. Oh no, hang on, that's right they're too busy having a career and solving the problems of the world. After all, the body is a woman's domain...

This woman is kind of annoying.
First of all, her opinion on clothes isn't original. Feminists have been making that point for at least 20 years. That was old news fifteen years ago when I was an undergrad! (dating myself now, aren't I? )
And again, she has missed the point. It's not so much a case of women can wear whatever they want and still be smart.
It's the fact that it's an issue at all.
The point is women having to defend their academic standing based on someone's opinion of their fashion taste.
This would not happen to men. Full stop.
There's your problem. Not whether or not you can have nice shoes and a high IQ.

I don't disagree with what she's saying necessarily. It's like the last article. I wouldn't argue that we need some balance in our lives.
It's the context, I think. It's like she thinks she's making some big revelation, but a) she's not and b) she's missing the bigger picture.
And she seems to be in an awfully influential position over a lot of young women. I think she's giving them a pretty mixed message about choices and expectations, personally.

Precisely, it shouldn't be an issue at all. There should be no reason for her to be condoning 'looking beautiful' without compromising your intelligence. I think we've moved on from that now and it appears to me she's showing herself to have quite fundamentally archaic views by even addressing the "issue" in the first place. I went to uni with a girl who was absolutely stunning, a real 'natural beauty' and she was studying engineering and then went on to do her MA in something along the engineering line (i'm clueless about all that sorry ). She's now a structural engineer, loves, and is insanely good at, her job. And she's still drop dead gorgeous!! If she was taken any less serious for looking the way that she does, she's the type of girl that would probably cause merry hell over it too lol xx

Not sure why this is even a news story tbh? I agree with Sarahkka.

Well said!

This woman is the head teacher at one of the private girls schools in my town and she was in our local paper again at the weekend over a rant about social networking sites!! Parents are worried that their children are spending too much time on them etc etc and are worried about 'cyber bullying' but she is defending the girls' choice to use these sites. She actually came across ok in the article (i'll see if i can find it online), but she does have some strong opinions! But then, anyone who has strong opinions these days usually come under fire from the media and are nearly always cast in a bad light!!

EDIT: found the link - http://www.bedfordshire-news.co.uk/b....asp?id=465464

Sarahkka, she doesn't have that much influence, she's one head on one public girls' school so I'm not even sure why she's getting all this press. Fortunately those girls will be rich enough to be and do whatever they want, whatever she says. They will be able to afford to look beautiful, will have had a privileged education that will mean they can have a financially and intellectually rewarding career if they choose and afford to have someone to look after their kids, or afford to stay at home. Thank god she isn't a head of an inner city comprehensive.

I came across the link at work as the UK Resource Centre for Women posted it as they are quoted in it. I was really quite disappointed that they came across as supporting her comments though their quote is ok.