Concern as boys lag behind girls in class

There are fears boys may fall further behind under NCEA. File picture / Wairarapa Times-Age

Education experts are calling for a campaign aimed at assisting boys in schools as NCEA results reveal a widening gap in achievement between the two sexes.

Latest Qualifications Authority figures show 58 per cent of boys failed University Entrance last year, compared with 49 per cent of girls.

Girls traditionally perform better than boys in some subjects, but educators warn the gap could widen as language-heavy assessments used in NCEA may see boys fare even worse.

Though the authority's data is not complete, educators suspect boys who pass will gain far less excellence and merit grades in UE, level three of NCEA, as they did in level two the previous year.

Former principals Michael Irwin, an education lecturer at Massey University, and Joseph Driessen, a boys education consultant, say affirmative action is needed to address the imbalance.

"Boys can achieve as well as girls, I have no doubt about that at all," said Mr Irwin. "So we just start looking at the way we're training boys and girls and what we are doing in the classroom."

Mr Driessen, former principal of Wanganui High School, said an affirmative action campaign for boys was needed.

"Like we did for our daughters 20 years ago. We have to say, now we will do it for our sons."

He said the education ministry also needed programmes to get more men into teaching.

Boys not only fare worse in national qualifications, they outnumber girls three to one in suspensions and stand-downs, and are far more likely to drop out of school without any qualifications.

"If you look at truancy, and stand-downs, if you swung it around the other way, I think there would be a huge public outcry," said Mr Irwin.

Traditionally boys have been outperformed by girls in English. But recently the Programme for International Student Assessment, PISA, found 15-year-old girls did better in traditional boys subjects of science and maths - a factor not usually found elsewhere in the developed world.

Education Minister Trevor Mallard last year announced a ministerial reference group on boys' education which expects to come up with options to help boys by the end of this year.

Education Ministry manager Steve Benson, who is coordinating the group, said the main area boys were underachieving in was writing - assessment in the national qualification is becoming increasingly writing-focused.

Educators say boys need to improve reading and writing at primary school.

Visiting child psychologist Steve Biddulph suggests parents delay sending boys to primary school, because they develop slower.

- HERALD ON SUNDAY