Britain’s schools are failing to help boys who under perform at school out of fear it will be ridiculed by feminist and gender equality groups, ex-UCAS chief has warned.
Mary Curnock Cook, who was head of the university admissions service until last year, has stated her alarm that boys falling behind at school has become ‘normalised’, reports the Telegraph.
She added that it has become an unpopular topic of conversation because she believes feminist groups have made the issue ‘taboo’.
Ms Curnock Cook told the newspaper: ‘I just find it unacceptable to think that it’s OK to let boys fall further and further behind in education and allow the gap to get bigger.’
Britain’s schools are failing to help boys who under perform at school out of fear it will be ridiculed by feminist and gender equality groups, ex-UCAS chief has warned (file photo)
Boys under performing is a widely recognised issue however nobody appears to be doing anything to help it, she said.
Although the gap between the performance of children from wealthy and poor families is narrowing, the disparity between girls and boys is only getting bigger.
She said: ‘In about ten years’ time the gap between boys and girls will be worse than rich and poor. That is astonishing really.’
Across the board from primary school age to A level years girls surpass the grades achieved by the opposite sex.
A gap that has significantly increased over the last ten years is the difference between boys and girls attending university, last year 57 per cent of women went compared to 43 per cent of men.
Mary Curnock Cook, who was head of the university admissions service until last year, has stated her alarm that boys falling behind at school has become ‘normalised’
Ms Curnock Cook also mentioned that issues surrounding equality between the genders usually involve the pay gap and glass ceiling. However she insisted that these are work-related issues that are nothing to do with education.
She said: ‘Quite often initiatives to support men do meet derision from feminists.’
Efforts to tackle issues involving inequality for men are often met by the ‘wrath’ of feminist and gender equality groups, she added.
The only university in the UK to advertise a men’s officer role, similar to seen women’s officer post seen in many universities, was abandoned after the only applicant dropped out due to ‘harassment’.
James Knight was keen to address male mental health issues at he University of the West of England, but the National Union of Students officers began campaigning against the role.
The role of men’s officer has since been suspended while it is reviewed by the university, they said.
The new higher education regulator received praise from Ms Curnock Cook, for beginning to address the under representation of white working class boys.
Boys under performing is a widely recognised issue however nobody appears to be doing anything to help it, she said (file photo)
They have been highlighted as a ‘target group’ for outreach activities at universities.
She claimed that it’s too late to suggest admitting more of them to university, their admission rate is low because they fell behind during their primary school years.
According to recent figures from the Department for Education, boys are more than three times likely to be permanently expelled from school.
Over the past five more than two times the amount of males have committed suicide compared to girls, even though their are fewer male students.
The Men and Boys Coalition will convene on Monday where Ms Curnock Cook will address the group of 80 organisations, charities and academics.
They will then release a number of recommendations to help tackle the problems faced by the male gender.
Founder of the Coalition, Dan Bell, said he hopes the meeting will coax further conversation about these topics.