Description
‘Boys’ Underachievement should be read by all who are involved in educational policy, whether at institutional or national level.’ - Journal of Research in International Education 2007 6: 373-375.
‘The problem of boys' underachievement in education is intrinsically interesting and the book offers a very engaging and readable analysis of the several factors that generate it, along with strongly credible pointers on how to ameliorate it.’ - International Review of Education, 2008, 54:113–130
‘well-presented short report, with relevant and useful sidebar quotes highlighting essential findings...’ – Gender and Education, Vol. 21, No. 1, January 2009
Gender disparity in education has usually been experienced as disadvantaging girls. Now a new phenomenon of boys’ underachievement – both in terms of participation and performance – is appearing in a number of countries.
This book reviews the research on boys’ underachievement and presents the arguments that have been put forward to understand its causes. The authors also present new studies from Australia, Jamaica, Lesotho and Samoa; and they use both the research and the evidence from the case studies to explore the causes and policy implications of this trend – the first time a truly cross-regional approach has been applied to the issue.
This book will interest all education policy-makers and analysts concerned to ensure gender equality in school education.
Contents
List of Acronyms and Abbreviations
Foreword
Part 1: Cross-Country Analysis
1. Introduction and Background
2. What the Existing Literature Says
3. Varying Dimensions and Lessons Emerging From Selected Commonwealth Countries
Part 2: The Case Studies
4. Australia: Socialisation and Socio-Economics
5. Jamaica: Alienation and High Drop-out Rates
6. Lesotho: A Case of Under-Participation
7. Samoa: A Major Challenge to the Education System
Bibliography
About the Authors
List of Figures
List of Tables