The Boys in Schools eBulletin

Volume 11 number 1 (May 2008)

Welcome to the new look Boys in Schools Bulletin. We hope that teachers will find its new form as informative and as practical as ever. The stories in this issue are certainly in keeping with our philosophy of combining research and practice and should provide insight and inspiration for all readers.

As debate continues around how to address ‘boys’ issues’ in schools without impacting on girls’ educational outcomes, it is timely to consider the differences AND the similarities between boys and girls. The research article in this edition, Gender differences in secondary students' satisfaction with school life, addresses that issue and highlights the importance of gathering contextual data before embarking on any educational initiative.

Resilience might be seen as the most recent in a long series of ‘flavours of the month’ but it is actually a well-established concept. Julia Tilling’s article will provide much food for thought about the ways teachers and schools go about the business of educating both boys and girls. Kids Who Read Succeed and BARB are both wonderful examples of resilience promoting practice.

We know that many of our readers have used the Being a Man Photopack extensively over the past 10 years, so it's great to present some ‘stories from the chalkface’ about the new Photopack and the way it's being used. Thanks so much to those teachers who sent in their stories.

Contributing stories to the Bulletin is wonderful way to showcase your school and to share good ideas. In fact the Bulletin would not exist without you, so we have two requests: 1. take the plunge and write up your good-news story (we have guidelines, a template and helpful people to assist you) and 2. give us your feedback on our new format. Like it or hate it – let us know by emailing Leah.

Happy reading and teaching.
Victoria Clay

Contents

1. Boys At River Bend: BARB
Working with boys at a rural school with a growing proportion of Indigenous students; one teacher's story of their Success For Boys program
John Haskell and Stephen King

2. Gender differences in secondary students' satisfaction with school life: an initial analysis
What are the differences that boys and girls experience at secondary level?
Victoria Clay

3. Resilience: helping at-risk students
Why do some male students bounce back from suspension while others don't?
Julia Tilling

4. Kids Who Read Succeed: a program evaluation
An innovative approach to literacy with families in Karuah and Raymond Terrace, NSW
Gaye Sheather

5. Using the Photopak: stories from practitioners Your stories of how you use this endlessly adaptive resource.
Victoria Clay

6. New resources from the Family Action Centre
Two new products launched at the recent Family and Community Strengths conferece: the Focus on Fathers CD-ROM and the So Now You're A Dad DVD for first-time Indigenous fathers.

7. Training opportunities with the FAC
Easy as ABCD, or Rock & Water, or Results Accountability … Visit our training and development page to find out what's new and what's happening at the FAC.