Event

The Institute for Gender and Development Studies presents the following postgraduate seminar by Mr. Melvin Julien, MPhil Candidate in Interdisciplinary Gender Studies on the topic “Through the Eyes of Boys: Male Academic Underachievement in Secondary Schools – A Case Study in Victoria district, Trinidad and Tobago.”

This event takes place from 3 to 4pm.

To view a printable version of this information, click here. 

Abstract

The literature on male academic underachievement, while not being unanimous about some issues, suggests that the phenomenon exists. Suggested explanations for its existence are the feminization of education where more females are engaged in education today than in the past; male privileging developed through differences in the socialization of boys and girls and hypermasculinity where under particular circumstances, some males exaggerate behaviours which are perceived to be manly but which may devalue formal education as a manly pursuit. However, some of the literature surveyed suggests that males are not so much underachieving as under-participating in education. Furthermore, in spite of males’ self-limitation in education there exists a gender gap in their favour in the labour market.   The methodology of this study entailed the examination of official educational statistics and data from focus group discussions. I conducted the focus group discussions among male students of five secondary schools in County Victoria, Trinidad to determine boys’ notions about male academic underachievement. I also solicited the boys’ views on how male academic achievement may be improved.