Engaging Middle Years Boys in Rural Educational Settings

This report on Engaging Middle Years Boys in Rural Educational Settings of the New South Wales Department of Education and Training (Cole, Mooney, Munns, Power, Sawyer & Zammit) shares findings from an action research project undertaken in 2008. The research was a partnership between a University of Western Sydney research team, the Priority Schools and Equity Coordination Unit (NSW DET) and principals, teachers and consultants in New England, Riverina and Illawarra and South East regions. The aim of the project was to consider what pedagogical changes teachers might introduce to improve levels of student engagement among middle years boys and then implement and evaluate the impact of these changes. The project drew on the results of previous research undertaken by the University of Western Sydney into the motivation and engagement of boys, especially those from Indigenous, low-socio-economic, rural and isolated backgrounds (Munns, et al., 2006). While the specific focus of this research was on the engagement of boys, there was a view that classrooms that engage boys are also likely to bring significant academic and social benefits for girls.