Underachievement in the School System
TOPIC: MALE UNDERACHIEVEMENT IN SCHOOLS:
THE ROLE OF THE TEACHER.
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When we look at school drop outs, reading problems, gender inequality, self esteem, and teaching/learning strategies; it is clear that there is not just one factor that results in boys’ underachievement in the school system. This paper seeks to address reasons why boys are underachieving in the school system in Trinidad and Tobago and how boys’ methods of learning differ from girls and what teachers can do to close the gender gap.
A previous study in Trinidad and Tobago found that classroom achievement in primary and secondary schools and in all core curriculum subjects was higher for females than males. Research was done by (Kutnick and Jules, 1988; Jules and Kutnick, 1990), based on the International Journal of Education Development 20 (2000) 65-84. During the Primary school years both boys and girls performed well up to the Common Entrance Exam. From Secondary level there has been a decline in the performance of boys. There are a number of reasons that resulted in boys’ underachievement in the Secondary School.
Teaching/Learning strategies are number one on the list. The research done in Trinidad and Tobago classrooms states that, teachers use a more Traditional and Didactic approach when teaching, (The International Journal, 2000. pg 76.) Students are to sit still and take in the information and then give responses when asked. Brain Based Research is used to aid teachers to better understand how boys and girls learn. Michael Gurian wrote a book which deals with how the brain works. It is entitled: Boys and Girls Learn Differently. He stated that throughout hundreds of years of history, theories have been generated to explain the elusive qualities of the human brain. Plato likened the brain to a ball of wax that becomes grooved as we learn and recall information over the same pathways. Aristotle thought that the heart was the source
THE ROLE OF THE TEACHER.
-------------------------------------------------
When we look at school drop outs, reading problems, gender inequality, self esteem, and teaching/learning strategies; it is clear that there is not just one factor that results in boys’ underachievement in the school system. This paper seeks to address reasons why boys are underachieving in the school system in Trinidad and Tobago and how boys’ methods of learning differ from girls and what teachers can do to close the gender gap.
A previous study in Trinidad and Tobago found that classroom achievement in primary and secondary schools and in all core curriculum subjects was higher for females than males. Research was done by (Kutnick and Jules, 1988; Jules and Kutnick, 1990), based on the International Journal of Education Development 20 (2000) 65-84. During the Primary school years both boys and girls performed well up to the Common Entrance Exam. From Secondary level there has been a decline in the performance of boys. There are a number of reasons that resulted in boys’ underachievement in the Secondary School.
Teaching/Learning strategies are number one on the list. The research done in Trinidad and Tobago classrooms states that, teachers use a more Traditional and Didactic approach when teaching, (The International Journal, 2000. pg 76.) Students are to sit still and take in the information and then give responses when asked. Brain Based Research is used to aid teachers to better understand how boys and girls learn. Michael Gurian wrote a book which deals with how the brain works. It is entitled: Boys and Girls Learn Differently. He stated that throughout hundreds of years of history, theories have been generated to explain the elusive qualities of the human brain. Plato likened the brain to a ball of wax that becomes grooved as we learn and recall information over the same pathways. Aristotle thought that the heart was the source
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