'Lad culture' and lack of respect impedes boys' school progess

Boys perform well at schools where the traditional 'three R's' are complemented by a fourth R – respect – according to the Office for Standards in Education (Ofsted).

The new reports, 'Boys' achievement in secondary schools' and 'Yes He Can – schools where boys write well', found that boys respond well to teachers who "set clear limits and high expectations, give constructive feedback, and maintain a sense of humour".

To overcome a 'laddish' culture present in some schools where anti-learning peer pressure is a major barrier to boys' achievement, the inspectors noted that close monitoring can provide boys with an "excuse to succeed".

Her Majesty's Chief Inspector for Schools, David Bell, said: "These reports give clear examples of good practice and valuable advice to schools looking to identify ways to engage boys in the classroom.

"I am pleased that many of the schools visited during these surveys have tackled an anti-learning 'laddish culture' and encouraged boys to make the most of their education.

"For too long, we have been seeing worrying statistics about how boys are doing, compared with girls."

School Standards Minister David Miliband said that the key to redressing the balance between the genders at school was to "crack the lad culture that stops too many young boys doing well at school".

He added: "This culture tells boys that it is fine to play around and not work hard. But this harms their chances of doing well, getting their exams and fulfilling their potential.

"I hope schools look closely at these findings. There are lessons for us all. We need to work hard to crack the lad culture and boys underachievement. There are some excellent ways of doing so in these reports."

Differences between the attainment of boys and girls have been widely analysed over recent years. The 1996 Ofsted report The Gender Divide highlighted a gap between girls' and boys' achievement at GCSE level. Recent GCSE results show girls doing better than boys in nearly all subjects, with boys doing broadly as well as girls only in mathematics and science.

The differences between girls' and boys' achievement are greatest in English, modern foreign languages, religious education and creative or design-based subjects.

(GMcG)