The debate in the UK about gender equity and equal opportunities for girls and boys has been "captured", in the last two decades, by an overriding concern with the issue of boys' apparent under-achievement. More recently, however, there has been a reaction to essentialist approaches related to "boy-friendly" pedagogies and…

Focuses on single-sex teaching in co-educational schools, using a case study of a school where single-sex teaching has been the norm. Analyzes student performance since General Certificate of Secondary Education began. Finds girls have consistently achieved better results than boys in most subjects, but both sexes showed relative improvement. (BT)

Issues of gender equity in English secondary schools over the last decade have been dominated by a concern with the "under-achievement" of boys, implicitly acknowledging the apparent success of strategies developed in schools in previous decades to improve equality of opportunity for girls. This paper presents evidence to challenge this…

The gender agenda in many North American, Western European, and Australasian countries has undergone a "boy turn" in the past decade amid growing concerns about boys' apparent "underachievement" relative to girls. One aspect of this turn has been the resurrection of interest in single-sex classes in coeducational public state…

Examines the gender gap in classroom interactions between teachers and students in eight English secondary schools, focusing on the views of teaching staff, the perspectives of Year 11 students, and observations of teacher-student interaction in the classroom. Suggests that boys and girls are treated differently in many classrooms. (CMK)

Argues that despite academic achievements, the odds are still often stacked against girls within and outside of school. Data from surveys and interviews at English high schools show that though girls have outperformed boys in secondary level examinations, they still feel alienated from traditionally male subjects, career aspirations are still…

Directing a publicly funded project can present a number of challenges to researchers in reconciling their own philosophy with the expectations of their funders. This paper explores those dilemmas in the context of a four year project funded by the British Government to explore strategies to raise boys' achievement. It reflects on the underlying…