Specialists in Educating Boys
‘In purchasing a new plant from the nursery, it is wise to gather as much information possible about tending to it, so the plant can thrive in its optimal conditions for growth.’
In his book, ‘Oh Boy!: Understanding the Neuroscience Behind Educating and Raising Boys’, boys’ education specialist Michael Nagel, makes many compelling arguments for boy specific education.
Nagel identifies that over the last few decades, and at a time of increased affluence, boys have continued to struggle in school and in many aspects of life.
“And while each boy is unique unto himself, all boys share many similarities in how they engage with the world around them … a world that often fails to recognise or pay enough attention to a myriad of biological and physiological differences between boys and girls.” (Michael Nagel, 2021)
Research identifies that…
Boys are three times more likely than girls to be quietly disengaged in their learning.
Boys are twice as likely than girls to be at or below national minimum standard in Writing by age 15 than girls, with the proportions struggling to achieve that benchmark growing from an average of 3.9 % of boys in Year 3 to 20.6 % of boys in Year 9.
In coeducational settings, compared to girls, boys typically shy away from participation in creative arts due to social pressures. In a boys’ school, they are more likely to explore their strengths and interests, feeling more comfortable to engage in an assortment of learning areas, unrestrained by gender stereotypes or concern about being judged.
It’s a simple fact that boys and girls grow at a different pace. Boys’ strengths are generally different from those of girls. One of the important advantages of a single-sex education is the opportunity it presents to create a learning environment, literally and figuratively, that accommodates what boys and young men need.
For example, while girls generally develop earlier physically and socially, refining their reading and writing skills sooner, boys are more spatial and visual by nature, and they often demonstrate a natural affinity for areas like abstract mathematics. They are also hard-wired to learn more easily through action than words. (International Boys’ Schools Coalition)
Boys’ brains are wired to require movement, space, action, and rest. They also learn better when material is presented in small portions, and sometimes think most deeply when they are doing something else. Thus, a typical co-education classroom that favours verbal and auditory learning can put an active boy at a disadvantage.
Boys often find themselves in trouble or on the fringes of doing well because the adults around them get frustrated over what is likely a manifestation of the combination of a boy’s developmental stage and his gender-specific neurophysiology. Nagel warns that if we are serious about educating and raising boys in a positive fashion, then it should be self-evident that we will need to understand their nature to work with them, instead of against them.
We need to understand the following domains and how they work in unison:
• Working with boys physically
• Working with boys intellectually or academically
• Working with boys emotionally or socially
• Working with boys spiritually
Over the coming Messenger editions, I will unpack each domain in greater detail.
When we are armed with evidence-based research, we can act intentionally with our teaching and learning. An excellent teacher of boys draws energy from their natural exuberance, and recognises that boys learn through story and activity, requiring clear purpose, direction and outcomes.
We are deliberate and passionate about making Prep a ‘boy friendly place’, focusing on the needs of boys, the way they react to situations, interact with learning, and the way in which they process information.
Peter Grimes | Headmaster
Reference:
Oh Boy!: Understanding the Neuroscience Behind Educating and Raising Boys – Michael Nagel (2021)Specialists in Educating Boys
