Don't Forget About Boys! Positive Role Models and Helping Boys Thrive Academically

There are so many discussions happening right now surrounding the need for more women in STEM. I will always advocate for the empowerment of girls to pursue the STEM field, but young men and boys are facing their own challenges that we can’t ignore.

For centuries, girls’ access to educational opportunities was limited for discriminatory reasons. However, dramatic changes in girls’ academic performance have been seen in the 90’s and 2000's. Girls are now outperforming boys academically and this gap between boys’ and girls’ academic performance is not primarily occurring the United States. Numerous studies have found that girls are outperforming boys in other developed countries such as the United Kingdom, Germany, Australia, and Japan as well as developing countries.

It is a biological fact that females mature sooner than their male peers. This includes the development of the prefrontal cortex, the region of the brain responsible for logic and reasoning. This difference in physiological and anatomical development leaves boys behind girls academically.

As if struggling to keep up academically with their female peers isn’t challenging enough, another great challenge facing boys is that schools tend to foster a girl focused culture. The teaching industry is dominated by female teachers and boys need positive male role models. Boys tend to struggle most in English and Language Arts classes. This could be because, of men who do teach, they are least likely to teach ELA.

Yes, we need to empower girls and build up their confidence in STEM, but we can’t forget to empower and build confidence in boys’ academics and encourage them to pursue ELA. The more men who pursue careers in teaching (especially ELA), the more positive role models schools will have to encourage boys and help them thrive academically.

References

Lenroot, R.K., Gogtay, N., Greenstein, D.K., Wells, E.M., Wallace, G.L., Clasen, L.S., Blumenthal, J.D., Lerch, J., Zijdenbos, A.P., Evans, A.C., et. al. (2007). Sexual dimorphism of brain developmental trajectories during childhood and adolescence. NeuroImage. 36:1065-1073.

Koening, R. (2023). In school, girls rule. Where does that leave boys? EdSurge.

Ullah, R. & Ullah, H. (2019). Boys versus girls’ educational performance: Empirical evidences from global north and global south. African Education Research Journal, 7(4): 163-167.