Reasons For Boys' Underachievement (AQA GCSE Sociology)

Although achievement levels for males are improving, boys appear to be underperforming compared to girls

• One factor is the influence of males' attitudes to studying

Research on the attitudes of 16-year-old boys, primarily from the working class, by Harris et al. (1993) revealed that boys:

• tend to suffer from low self-esteem and poor motivation

• are less willing to try hard to overcome challenges in understanding the work set

• are pressured to engage in a 'laddish' culture which encourages anti-learning attitudes as it is 'uncool' to work hard

They also found that in comparison to girls, boys are:

• less able to efficiently manage their time and more prone to becoming distracted

• are less willing to do homework and spend less time on it

• less inclined to consider their future and how crucial qualifications are to it

A second factor that explains why boys lag behind girls is because of the following ways that education has become 'feminised':

• The majority of primary school teachers are female

  • There are not enough male teachers to act as role models to reduce macho or 'laddish' behaviour among boys

• Moir and Moir (1998) suggest that schools have become too 'girl friendly' or biased towards females

  • Boys are compelled to learn in ways that are not appropriate for them, such as a non-competitive setting, coursework, and a focus on verbal skills rather than practical skills

Some teachers may have lower expectations of male students who they perceive as lacking motivation

• This labelling may lead to a self-fulfilling prophecy

A third factor that explains why boys underperform in education is that boys and men are experiencing a crisis of masculinity

• Males believe they no longer have a clear-cut role in society as their traditional masculine identity is under threat

• This impacts boys self-esteem and motivation at school as they are uncertain about their future

• Being a 'geek' is not masculine and this may be a barrier to some boys taking education seriously