This thesis is based on data collected from a longitudinal study of a cohort of upper secondary students in a working class Australian public high school. The study focuses on processes of scholastic selection and examines the relationship between the academic curriculum and students' social class, gender and ethnicity. It explores the way in which these processes create and maintain inequalities in educational outcomes, as measured in terms of early school leaving, curriculum location, scholastic achievement and entry into university. The study concludes that school level processes relating to curriculum offerings, promotion policies and approaches to teaching and learning have an important effect on student outcomes, with regressive and rigidly academic approaches and conservative teacher values contributing to disadvantage girls, particularly migrant girls and students from low social status backgrounds.