Boys, masculinity and literacy: The influence of notions of masculinity on educational outcomes

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  • Laura Scholes The University of Queensland

https://doi.org/10.4471/mcs.2013.29

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Abstract

The homogenizing and binary categorization of boys and girls inpopular and political rhetoric continues in educational contexts. To explore differences in boys’ experience atschool a recent study examined the influence of disadvantage and relatednotions of masculinity on literacy outcomes.Specifically, this exploration included 297 surveys and 36 interviews withprimary aged students from a range of socioeconomic backgrounds. While therewas an overall tendency for more girls than boys to indicate higher readingachievement, higher reading frequency and higher levels of reading enjoymentthese differences were not as significant as expected. While many boys wereindeed doing well in literacy and positioned reading positively within theirgendered identity, of concern were some expressions of masculinity that wereinterpreted as problematic for many boys in very personal and potent ways. For these boys, socioeconomic status wasoften associated with constraining experiences that interplayed with powerfulconstructions of masculinity that impacted upon literacy experiences andoutcomes. Continued growth in socialinequity in many Western societies, including the Mediterranean,makes understanding the influence of socioeconomic status on boys’ literacyexperiences significant for addressing social change and transforming notionsof masculinity to include positive constructions that young boys can aspire to,and value.

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Author Biography

Laura Scholes, The University of Queensland

Dr Laura ScholesSchool of EducationThe University of Queensland

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Published

2013-06-21

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Scholes, L. (2013). Boys, masculinity and literacy: The influence of notions of masculinity on educational outcomes. Masculinities &Amp; Social Change, 2(2), 194–220. https://doi.org/10.4471/mcs.2013.29

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