12-talspigerne i medierne: Rammesætning og stereotypificering af højtpræsterende piger og kvinder i det danske uddannelsessystem

Over the last couple of decades, girls and women have generally outperformed boys and men in the educational system, and in the Danish media, high-achieving girls and women are often referred to as straight A girls (Danish: 12-talspiger). In this article, we conduct a corpus linguistic analysis of the frames constructed around the concept of straight A girls in Danish national newspapers (N = 215 articles). Th e analysis shows that straight A girls are framed as sick and conform in a societal culture dominated by performance pressure. Th e frames are primarily manifested in contrasting pairs where seemingly positive attributes are aff ected by or turned into negative assessments, and in highly generalizing and exorbitant accounts refl ecting a stereotypical conception of the girls. Conversely, the under-achieving boys are framed as easy-going and festive, but concurrently, also more innovative and independent. Th e article gives a critical account of such stereotypes, which could have substantial consequences for society’s understanding and treatment of girls and women under education.