The Government is planning to drop feminism from the A-level politics syllabus.

Under proposals from the Department for Education, the current section on feminism – which includes issues around sex and gender – will be removed. Some elements, such as the Suffragettes, remain on the new syllabus but are scattered across other sections, such as that relating to ‘pressure groups’.

In the Department for Education proposal, aimed at British sixth form and college students, the only woman in a list of seven political thinkers is Mary Wollstonecraft.

The open consultation on the planned changes to the AS and A-level syllabus is open until December 15 and campaigners are urging the public to oppose them.

Mary Wollstonecraft is the only 'political thinker' listed Credit: Alamy

Sophie Walker, leader of the Women’s Equality Party, said:

“WE are appalled at plans to remove the current teaching on feminism on the politics A-level syllabus, along with the topics of sex/gender, gender equality, and patriarchy.

“The political history taught to our children is already hugely biased in favour of men’s achievements and institutions,” Ms Walker continues. “The plan to shoehorn feminism, one of the most important and ongoing political forces in modern history, under the banner of ‘pressure groups’ is both insulting and misguided.”

The existing syllabus requires students to have knowledge of the core ideas, doctrines and theories of feminist thought, of tensions within feminism and of competing feminist traditions’. It encompasses the subject areas of sex/gender, gender equality, patriarchy, public/private divide and essentialism.

The current feminism section of the politics A-level Credit: gov.uk

A petition against the proposed changes has gained almost 3,000 signatures since it was started two days ago by June Eric-Udorie. She urges Nicky Morgan, education secretary and women’s minister, to scrap the plans.

Eric-Udorie writes: "The problem with erasing and writing women out of history is that we only get half the story.

“When women are underrepresented in society, the government should be working to address this problem. As a young woman and student, it is imperative that girls and boys get the full picture at school, or we are doing them a disservice. It has been said that you cannot be what you cannot see. Female role models are important”.

Jacquelyn Guderley, co-founder of Stemettes – an organisation aimed at inspiring girls into STEM careers – warned that the move would halt progress and that ‘women’s voices are often silenced’.

Sophie Walker, leader of the Women's Equality Party Credit: Andrew Crowley

On her blog, she wrote:

"We are going through a huge feminist revival. Even if we weren’t, our daughters and granddaughters, sons and grandsons, nieces, nephews, and families need to know about the movements and key female figures that got women to where they are today.

"If we know nothing of key social and political milestones – women gaining the right to matriculate and graduate from many universities in 1920 and gaining the right to vote in 1928 – how can we learn from them and progress?

"Women’s voices are often silenced. Let’s not let them silence the women’s voices of the past too".

The Department for Education said feminism could still be studied as part of the reformed sociology A-level, and explained that the proposed move ‘tied in with school autonomy and trusting heads’.

Nicky Morgan is education secretary Credit: Geoff Pugh

A spokesperson told Telegraph Wonder Women:

“We are reforming GCSEs and A-levels to ensure all pupils are equipped with the knowledge and skills they need to progress to further and higher education, access a wide range of jobs and succeed in a competitive global market.

“We want schools to highlight the issues faced by women from all walks of life and ages in history, including the work of key female political thinkers within the ideologies covered and in UK and global politics.

“We are carrying out a consultation on the new Politics A-level, and as always we will listen carefully to the views of the sector.”

The planned syllabus change comes weeks after student Jessy McCabe succeeded in her campaign to have female composers included on an A-level music syllabus, after realising there were no women among the 63 compositions selected by the Edexcel examining board for her exams next year. More than 3000 people signed her petition and she won the backing of academics and musicians.