Wonder what our lady elementary school teachers have to say about this?
"Why boys avoid school reading
Research suggests literary choices not relevant to males", Toronto Star, August 30, 2003
Extract:
"Trevor Gambell of the College of Education at the University of Saskatchewan, says the emphasis on fictional texts and journal writing at the elementary and secondary levels — used in many courses to reinforce literacy skills — is something girls generally take to more readily to than boys. And female teachers only naturally choose texts appealing to them.
Boys' reading, much of which is online, he said, is "considered non-legitimate."
"If the whole purpose of reading is to get children to read better and develop life-long reading, we've got to provide materials and instruction that foster that."
Gambell also said teachers can offer students a variety of ways to complete assignments, some media-based, others written.
"Old practices die hard," added Sanford. "But everybody can be learning similar concepts in different kinds of ways.... When doing projects, some students complete them online, some using visuals, some can (give verbal presentations), sharing different ways of learning. So teachers have to — and are — thinking about different ways of showing knowledge other than writing it down and passing a test."
The concern for boys is not limited to Canada. Around the world, countries are grappling with boys' apparent lack of interest in reading and poor performance on literacy tests. Government studies on boys and reading have been commissioned, as have projects to improve boys' test scores."
