PenDragon - the official magazine of Lyford Cay International School PenDragon Vol 2, Spring 2016 | Page 16

NO PROBLEM HERE
Engaging Boys in the Classroom
By O’Niel Bain, Communications and Development Assistant
socioeconomic backgrounds, are learning and performing
well in the classroom. There is no inherent problem in the
education of boys if forward-thinking teaching strategies are
implemented to meet their unique needs.
Boys and girls are different. This may come as no surprise
to you, but what many educators are continuing to realise
is that boys and girls often learn in different ways. In order
to ensure that every student, whether male or female, is
being reached in the classroom, the best educators are
implementing innovative strategies that pique students’
interests and make learning more engaging. In the 21st-
century classroom, there are more opportunities to do this
than ever before. Digital communication has brought about
an immense shift in the speed at which information can be
shared. This has affected the processes of teaching and
learning in ways that very few of us could have foreseen
even a few short years ago.
Although it is true that both boys and girls may benefit from
a more kinesthetic approach to teaching, researchers have
reported that boys, in particular, benefit greatly from a
shift away from traditional modes of teaching and learning.
Having experienced a very traditional K-12 education myself,
I witnessed firsthand the effect of poor engagement and a
lack of innovative teaching strategies on boys. Fortunately,
I was able to make sense of, and function successfully in,
the traditional learning environment, but the same cannot
be said for many of my peers. From their very first day
at school, boys were, and still are in many places, told to
sit still, be quiet and read or write silently. Thankfully, the
profound technological advancements of the last decade
and the innovative framework of educational programmes
like the International Baccalaureate have afforded teachers
As you may know, the conversation on the “problem” of
teaching boys is not a new one. Yet, as Michael Reichert
and Richard Hawley note in their book, Reaching Boys,
Teaching Boys: Strategies That Work — and Why, those still
on the pessimistic side of the divide seem to miss that many
boys around the world, of varying learning abilities and
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