WALT: Boys and Achievement We have looked at the reasons for girls achievement We are now going to look at some sociological explanations of boys underachievement NOTE THE DIFFERENCE!!!

Boys and literacy Reading is seen as feminine. Girls ‘bedroom culture’ involves talking- boys have different leisure activities. As a result they have poorer literacy and language skills (DCSF, 2007) Language affects performance. AO3: the government have introduced initiatives in response to this problem e.g. The National Literacy Strategy

Globalisation and the decline of traditional men’s jobs (page 57) Globalisation: idea that the world is becoming increasingly interconnected and barriers are disappearing e.g. instant communication. Mitsos and Browne: boys believe they have little prospect of getting a proper job. ‘identity crisis for men’ Impacts boys’ motivation AO3: decline has been largely in working-class manual jobs that do not require qualifications.

Mitsos & Browne Continued… Poor job prospects undermines a boys sense of worth and self respect. They may give up on trying to get qualifications.

Feminisation of Education (Page 57) Tony Sewell (2006)- education has become feminised. Qualities associated with girls are encouraged more. What are M/F qualities? Coursework should be replaced with exams. More outdoor adventures/ physical activities.

Shortage of male primary school teachers: Yougov (2007) Yougov (2007), said that 39% of 8-11 year old boys have no lessons whatsoever with a male teacher. Yet most boys surveyed said the presence of a male teacher made them behave better and 42% said it made them work harder. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/educationne ws/10475740/Just-a-fifth-of-new-primary-school- teachers-are-men.html

Yougov continued: Female teachers are unable to cope with boys behaviour. Male teachers maybe needed to redress this balance.

Do we really need more male teachers? P.58 AO2/3 Skills. Becky Francis (2006) found that two-thirds of 7-8 year olds believed the gender of teachers does not matter.

Barbara Read (2008) Read is critical of this idea that schools are becoming feminised… She identifies two types of language or 'discourse': 1: Disciplinarian discourse (DD): the teacher's authority is made explicit and visible, for example, through shouting, an 'exasperated, tone of voice or sarcasm. DD = Associated with the Masculine

2: Liberal discourse (LD): the teacher's authority is implicit and invisible. This child-centred discourse involves “pseudo-adultification”: the teacher speaks to the pupil as if they were an adult and expects them to be kind, sensible and respectful of the teacher. LD = Associated with feminine

Read & Conclusions: She found that female teachers were just as likely as males to use a 'masculine' discourse to control pupils behaviour. This shows that females can provide this “stricter culture” that boys apparently prefer - so that boys may thrive.

‘Laddish’ subcultures Growth of these “laddish” subcultures contribute to male underachievement.

Debbie Epstein (1998) She found that working-class boys are likely to be harassed, labelled as sissies and subjected to homophobic (anti-gay) verbal abuse if they appear to be ‘swots’.

Why do Boys form Laddish Subcultures?(p58) Francis (2001) boys were more concerned than girls about being labelled by peers … Swot label is a greater threat to masculinity than the swot label is to femininity. Masculinity = tough, manly and physical labour (manual work). Non Manual Work (mental labour) is seen as effeminate/ girly and inferior.

Epstein: Epstein observes, 'real boys don't work' - and if they do they get bullied. They avoid the ‘gay’ label by veering away from their work…

The Observer (5 January 1998) A Moral panic? “We are talking about boys. They cannot read, write their own names or speak properly. They are physically and socially clumsy. Increasingly they cannot even do boys’ stuff like maths and science.” The Observer (5 January 1998)

Where society overreacts to a certain perceived problem. What is a moral panic? Where society overreacts to a certain perceived problem. The media sensationalises the problem and people panic some more. E.g…all muslims are terrorists … Are boys really failing that badly?

Jessica Ringrose (2013) Feminist Moral panic has caused a major shift in educational policy, which is now preoccupied with raising boys’ achievements. 2 problems with this approach: 1. It ignores the problem of disadvantaged working-class and minority ethnic pupils. Other disadvantaged groups in education get ignored.

Jessica Ringrose (2013) Feminist 2.The moral panic about boys ignores other problems faced by girls in school. These include sexual harassment and bullying, self- esteem and identity issues, and stereotyped subject choices.

Audrey Osier (2006) Feminist AO focus on underachieving boys =neglect of girls. Don’t discuss the problems of girls exclusions. Don’t discuss the increasing number of black exclusions. Official exclusion rates that are compiled hides the problem of exclusion among girls, including self- exclusion (truancy) and internal exclusion (removal from class).

Gender, Class and Ethnicity (p.59): p.32 of Workbook Please answer the questions on page 32: