Taking Boys Seriously: A Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Male School-Life Experiences in Northern Ireland

Harland, K., & McCready, S. (2012), Ulster University

Abstract

This report presents the findings of a five year longitudinal study (2006-2011) carried out by The Centre for Young Men’s Studies at the University of Ulster and funded by the Department of Education and the Department of Justice.

The research was initiated in response to concerns about boys’ educational underachievement and wider concerns about boys’ health and well-being. The study annually tracked the same 378 adolescent boys aged 11-16 across nine post-primary schools in Northern Ireland. The longitudinal aspect of the study makes a significant contribution to how we can better understand and appreciate reasons why certain boys may struggle at school and therefore not achieve more successful educational outcomes.

Concerns about boys’ underachievement have been highlighted since the mid 1990’s and despite a suite of educational policies aimed at addressing underachievement, gaps between boys and girls remain consistent.

While some of the findings could also apply to girls, this study focuses firmly on boys’ post-primary school and life experiences. The reader will sense the intentional consideration given throughout this report to the voice and experiences of the boys who participated in this study being at the centre of the research process. This was achieved through a creative and mixed methodology underpinned by an ethos of ‘Taking Boys Seriously.’ The methodology also included working directly with boys in the classroom in partnership with experienced youth workers from YouthAction Northern Ireland. The reader will sense the energy, aspirations and at times the despair of these boys as they wrestled with a complex range of social, physical, psychological, emotional and transitional issues that impacted upon them at different stages of their development.

The report captures boys longing for a different type of relationship with adults as they mature. Despite this, boys felt they were often treated with increasing levels of distrust and suspicion by adults and found it difficult to remove negative labels that had been attached to them when they were younger. Although living in a society emerging from conflict boys spoke of feeling alienated from their communities and detached from decision making and peace-building processes. In addition the report reveals complex contradictions in how boys construct their masculine identities and accept certain acts of violence as a normal and everyday part of male youth culture.

While acknowledging that not all boys experience problems at school or in their community, the findings will be challenging to everyone who is concerned about boys’ education and development. In particular it challenges those working with boys and young men to try and see beyond the bravado and stereotypical images that so often mask who boys really are.

This report makes recommendations which have important pedagogical implications for teaching, supporting and working with boys. Equally important it also offers many pragmatic ways to assist teachers in the classroom to help boys make better connections between school and their wider social, emotional and developmental needs.