We know boys literacy skills and interest is lower than girls, so now what?
Reaching Boys, Teaching Boys by Reichert and Howley recommend five lessons from teachers used in their study of effective lessons for boys. The common theme of the lessons is group work, untraditional structure of class (less lecture), and technology. The research included students range from middle school to upper high school with modest to high aptitude. Teachers were from various places in the world with 3-38 years of experience. The first lesson, required the students to build something, this got the boys interacting and experiencing hands on learning. The second lesson was based on a game. Boys respond well to competition, this keeps them engaged. Lesson three was based on active movement, this helps students grasp and retain a wide variety of conceptual material. Lesson four was called "Triumph of the Nerds: The transitivity of engaging boys in consideration of their deep nature" This lesson focused on boys discovering their own nature and character. The final lesson was developed around a unit of slavery. The students had to act out a situation a slave would encounter, this took the students out of their comfort zone. The teachers incorporated technology through research, recording, and games. As educators we know the more involved the student is in their own learning and discovery the more information is retained.
Male Call: Fifth Grade Boys Reading Preference is a research based article. In this article, they present the results of a qualitative study conducted with fifth-grade boys who dialogued about books they were reading using e-mail exchanges with female teacher education candidates. The purpose of this qualitative study was twofold: (1) to examine the reading preferences of fifth-grade boys and (2) to motivate inner-city boys to read more. This study was part of a federally funded Teacher Quality Education grant from the U.S. Department of Education. (pg. 182)
The results of the study was that boys read books that "looked good" they chose books based on their cover, struggling readers choose books with large fonts and margins. The students would stick to a favorite author. The study did not include comics, magazines or a large variety of informational text. The boys enjoyed using technology to interact with a teacher and share their book. The boys prefer books with characters that have realistic flaws.
Peter West wrote Ideas Schools Could Use to Increase Boys Achievement, he believes mentoring, reflecting on school grouping, harness fathers influence, monitor behavior, more active learning and increase rewards.
The common theme to improve literacy among boys is to have more active learning, using different technology outlets, having books and reading materials that would appeal to boys. It is still to early to thoroughly evaluate if technology has made a dramatic impact but educators believe it has.
It is also up to us as educators to attend technology workshops. I know my district has done a poor job providing training in technology. Especially with the BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) being implemented next school year. Our students were born in the technology era, it will difficult to keep up with them if we are not educated ourselves.
