Understanding How Boys LearnUnderstanding How Boys Learn

THE AGENDATHE AGENDA•How boys learn best – the nature of a young male learner•Physiological and chemical make ups – building up the brain•Active Learning - Are boys underachieving?•Confidence and self esteem•The physical environment •Role of the adult•Boys and writing – development of language•Avoiding stereotype – yet following fascination

Some facts Some facts • In girls, the language areas of the brain develop before the

areas used for spatial relations. In boys, it's the other way around. A curriculum which ignores those differences will produce boys who can't write and girls who think they can’t do maths

• In girls, emotion is processed in the same area of the brain that processes language. So, it's not too difficult for most girls to talk about their emotions. In boys, the brain regions involved in talking are separate from the regions involved in feeling.

• The typical teenage girl has a sense of hearing which is significantly better than a teenage boy. That's why daughters so often complain that their fathers are shouting at them

Barriers to Boys LearningBarriers to Boys Learning• Lack of independence• Behind girls in physical, social and emotional development• Use 30 times less language in their play – language gap means lack of emotional development – 70% less attuned in their hearing• Research is showing from birth boys are more

interested in movement than faces• Need to ‘chunk’ the learning• More interested in movement than faces

Emotions and boys Emotions and boys • Demanding of adult attention• Emotions are expressed through action and not words• Exploration and discovery are key – need to see the point in it• They watch!!

Physiological DevelopmentPhysiological DevelopmentBoys – ankles and wrists are not fully developed until they around 5 and a half to 6 years old – the thumb

Girls – a whole year or year and a half earlier!

Boys – more interested in learning through movement

Bumbly boys – what is going on?

Girls – more interested in learning through words and pleasing adults

• ‘A well organised balance system indicates a well organised brain. Balance is trained through movement. Those children who are unable to stay still are showing their balance and motor systems

are not yet sufficiently mature to remain still for long periods of time.

They need to move to get their brains into gear’ Goddard Blythe

Something to ponderSomething to ponder• If adults view energetic, action orientated activity as immature

and disruptive..

• If adults ask boys to conform to behaviour that they are not physically, emotionally or cognitively ready for…

• This can result in the seeds of male underachievement in education being sown before the children are 5

VALUE THE DIFFERENCEVALUE THE DIFFERENCE

• we know that to give boys and girls equal rights in the early years means to give them different and specific opportunities – it is not sufficient to say everything is open to all children, since at this age children choose gender specific activities

What’s going on?

Not the what but often the where?Not the what but often the where?• Boys will often access different types of play

and learning in the outdoor area – The Swords and light sabres

• Be aware of the genderification of the classroom – book areas

Is this a stereotype?Is this a stereotype?

The Nature Of The BoyThe Nature Of The Boy

What makes the Boy?I am..I need..You need to give...

Boys as VerbsBoys as Verbs

Boys are generally doers – they are busy, they are active – even early drawings reflect action

Spot the differenceSpot the difference

Even if you have not yet learnt to love batman – you can learn some interesting things watching him play. Boys bring their own agendas, they get into some very active, very physically involved games. Boys like to be people in authority, policemen, fire fighters or super-heroes – embrace it!

Something we don’t Something we don’t needneed

Physiological and cognitive Physiological and cognitive differencedifference

• Boys – more Testosterone – more competitive • Girls – less Testosterone – more compliant• Girls – more Serotonins - more controlled, logical and analytical• Boys – less Serotonins – not so cautious, more likely to explore and take risks• Girls – more Dopamine- hear better, listen more attentively, need less stimulation• Boys – less Dopamine – THE R.A.S – shorter attention span, greater need for stimulation

Building confidence Building confidence and self-esteemand self-esteem

‘the view you adopt of yourself profoundly the view you adopt of yourself profoundly affects the way you lead your lifeaffects the way you lead your life’ Dweck’ Dweck

What messages are we giving boys about their competence as What messages are we giving boys about their competence as learners?learners?To what extend do we value their natural drive and To what extend do we value their natural drive and physicality?physicality?Are we using interests as starting points for learning Are we using interests as starting points for learning journeys? – Angry Birds!journeys? – Angry Birds!How do we find out what makes them tick?How do we find out what makes them tick?

Active learning and ‘possibility Active learning and ‘possibility thinking’thinking’

• nurturing children’s creativity involves close scrutiny of processes of meaning-construction for each learner

• recognizing the sheer creative engagement manifest by young learners, as they move beyond the given, or ‘what is’, to the possible, or to ‘what could be’.

Possibility as the core of creativity

Creative practice and practice which Creative practice and practice which fosters creativityfosters creativity

• ‘without sensitive engagement with children and with their families, emergent possibilities for creativity that are in every child do not develop or can be quickly extinguished’ (Bruce 2004:12).

The outdoors has become fashionable. But we need to be careful not to make our children's outdoor environments too prescriptive. Take the role play area, for example. I have seen mud kitchen kits for sale that provide new pots, pans and utensils. You can even purchase a mud kitchen cooker. Are we going to tell the children "Be careful of the new cooker" when the play gets messy? I hope no one tells them "No, that's the cooker over there" when they boil water on a tree stump instead.

The whole idea when equipping a mud kitchen should be to recycle old stuff that children can use for whatever they wish. I believe children's free imagination and the outdoors are closely related. Give them loose parts in the form of big blocks, crates, guttering and a leaky metal coffee pot. Then let them get on with it.

REFLECTING ON PRACTICEREFLECTING ON PRACTICE• Do all practitioners feel that they know the boys in their key groups – what can be done to improve this• Evaluate developing relationships between practitioners and parents of boys• Do families and practitioners truly value the choices that boys

make• How do adults support the boys in the setting – consistency of

approach is vital

THE CHALLENGETHE CHALLENGE• Encourage greater self-motivation, empathy,

reflection, optimism and self awareness• Place greater emphasis on speaking and listening• Allow time for review of learning, give boys the

opportunity to be more reflective of their achievements

• Boys WILL NOT work if they do not see the point – motivation and interest are key!

• Adults as researchers – learning takes a personal path based upon individuality –

What curriculum do you have on offer?

Testosterone Testosterone • Makes boys (and some girls) energetic, boisterous,

competitive, a need for hierarchy and self-confidence, self-reliance, risk taking,

single mindedness, a need to be recognized, valued, managed• Boys need stimulation, variety and physical activity• Boys like HUMOUR