Differential Educational Achievement – GENDER 🡪 BOYS:

gender gap is result of poor literacy among males (reading = feminine). Lower vocab limits achievement through language codes.

Globalization decline in heavy industries.

decline in male employment = identity crisis. Result in belief they will not get proper job, less motivation for good grades.

schools do not nurture masculine traits (competition) and celebrate more feminine ones (attention, focus).

change to just exams and outdoor education. Boys become ‘bored’ at school.

feminine profession, and lack male role models, explain why learning is seemed feminine, and boys don’t try.

Boys gain symbolic capital amongst peers, more disruptive and seek status from exclusion. Leading to underachievement.

boys see themselves as more capable than they are. Then fail but blame everyone else. Lack of prep and then fail.

1. Reading Champions: male role models who enjoy reading.

2. Playing for Success: raise literacy, numeracy, and ICT, but out-of-school study support centres.

3. Recruitment of Male teachers: targets men to then join teaching.