Abstract
The International and South African societies have conflicting views on the academic underperformance of male learners. Male learners are more likely to underperform academically in comparison to female learners at the primary, secondary and tertiary school levels. They are also more likely to drop out of school and university. Consequently, this study explored the perceptions and responses of teachers to the academic underperformance of male learners in the South African context.
This study was based on a qualitative approach with an interpretivist paradigm. In this study, data was collected by means of face-to-face interviews with eight participants who are intermediate phase teachers. The findings from this study highlighted three themes. The first theme described teachers’ perceptions and constructions of gender in Primary School. It emerged that teachers’ constructions of gender were heavily influenced by the stereotypical roles of boys and girls, especially in terms of academics. The second theme described teachers’ evident unawareness of differential treatment of boys and girls. Teachers felt gender parity has been achieved and are unable to see the gender gap because they put their differential treatment down to biological and innate differences between boys and girls as well as boys overtaking girls in secondary school. Finally, the third theme described teachers’ gendered responses and the impact of academic underperformance of boys. Teachers’ gendered responses to male academic underperformance included having lower expectations of boys’ academic achievement because of misconceptions of boys being biologically wired to underperform in academics but excel and be interested in sport.
The study found that South African teachers’ perceptions and responses to boys’ academic underachievement are impacting boys’ academic achievement negatively, subsequently increasing the gender gap significantly. Consequently, the findings of this study revealed the following needs: firstly, for tertiary teacher training to include training to address these issues. Secondly, ascertain teachers’ perceptions and possible responses to male academic performance and masculinity when interviewing candidates for teaching positions. Thirdly, addressing the parents’ perceptions and responses to male academic underperformance at a school level. Lastly, bringing
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about awareness of male academic underperformance and the roles the relevant stakeholders play to society, through awareness campaigns and media coverage.
KEYWORDS:
Teachers’ perceptions, male academic underperformance, hegemonic masculinity, South Africa