ABSTRACT
Recently, however, there has been a distinct shift of emphasis. ‘Equal opportunities’ is now just as likely to be associated with boys’ as with girls’ achievement. The talk is of making the curriculum more ‘boy-friendly’ and of encouraging boys to be better organised and motivated as ‘learners’. Although girls have for years outperformed boys in language-based subjects (English, English literature and modern languages) it is now evident that they have also caught up in the traditionally male-dominated subjects of science and maths and are even edging ahead (although, as we shall see below, the situation is more complex than this). The differences have become evident even at younger ages, with girls doing better on reading tests and being generally more competent in language and communication skills in all areas of the curriculum (Swann, 1992; OFSTED, 1993). It has always been the case that more boys than girls have been labelled as having learning difficulties and more of them have been allocated extra help in designated special needs groups or classes (Ford, et al. 1982).
