http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/0,2106,3278712a11,00.html
Girls better in every subject 13 May 2005 By SOPHIE NEVILLE Girls have out-performed boys in every school subject and low male achievement is spurring concern. Secondary school NCEA results were released yesterday by the New Zealand Qualifications Authority. The profiles show a growing gap between girls' and boys' achievement, and suggest children might be better off in single-sex schools. Girls-only schools dominate all NCEA levels. Their pass rates are far above the national average. At level three â which replaced Bursary last year â 66 per cent of pupils at girls-only schools passed, compared with 49 per cent of pupils at boys-only schools. Only 40 per cent of year-13 boys at co-ed schools passed level three, while 49 per cent of their female classmates did. Boys' literacy results were also a concern, only 65 per cent of male pupils passing level one literacy credits compared with 75 per cent of girls. Wellington High School principal Prue Kelly was not surprised. English was particularly geared toward girls and many of the topics did not interest boys, she said. "Analysing characters and having to think about why an author wrote what is often of no interest to boys." Boys tended to "drift" more than girls and were not as focused on their futures. However, the relatively low pass rates of all pupils also needed to be looked at, she said. "I would have thought more than about half of students would be passing at all the levels." Pupils spoken to by The Dominion Post admitted boys were less organised in class and did not seem to study as much as girls, but were surprised by the size of the achievement difference. Wellington High School year 13 pupil Patrick Whatman passed level two last year and did not think boys and girls differed much academically. Going to a co-ed school suited him but pupils might be pressured more to succeed at single-sex schools, he said. "It would be crazy being at a single-sex school â it's not real life." Education Ministry learning policy manager Steve Benson said the gender gap was a big issue. A research project was under way to address boys' under-achievement but there were no easy answers. "One of the most bizarre suggestions I've heard for getting boys to achieve was to change the brightness of the lightbulbs in classrooms." Others had suggested the problem lay behind typical Kiwi attitudes to masculinity, with boys more interested in rugby than study. It was hoped research would provide practical changes for schools to implement as soon as possible. Wellington College principal Roger Moses was concerned about boys' low achievement. The NCEA system did not work as well for boys as it did for girls, he said. "Girls tend to be more organised. The old system with one big exam at the end seemed to suit boys' learning styles more. But that's not an excuse â we do need to look at ways to help boys' learning." Other information released yesterday showed national pass rates for NCEA subjects were similar to last year â about 55 per cent of pupils passing level one, 59 per cent passing level two and 49 per cent passing level three. Continuing a trend, Maori and Pacific Island boys achieved far lower than other pupils. NZQA has warned that trying to compare schools with one another was dangerous territory under NCEA. Schools did not follow the same programme of study any more. Spokeswoman Heather Church said parents should read schools' Education Review Office reports when choosing a school for their children. The Dominion Post ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor --------------------~--> What would our lives be like without music, dance, and theater? Donate or volunteer in the arts today at Network for Good! http://us.click.yahoo.com/pkgkPB/SOnJAA/Zx0JAA/pyIolB/TM --------------------------------------------------------------------~-> Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/boysed/ <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
