New research suggests that gender perceptions, parental support, and limiting workplace expectations have a profound impact on working-class boys’ reading habits and abilities.
The study was led by Dr Laura Scholes, an expert on boys and reading at Queensland University of Technology (QUT).
The 15 boys who participated were attending year 5 and 6 (10-12 years old) at three primary schools in low socioeconomic communities in South East Queensland. These areas have a low proportion of students completing year 12 and high levels of unemployment.
The study suggests that while many working-class boys love reading, some can be discouraged by particular notions of masculinity, such as those that value physicality and strength while devaluing reading.
The five boys that indicated high-levels of enjoyment for books and the social aspects of reading were typically avid readers and exceeded year level reading requirements. They expressed confidence in reading and a positive attitude to reading a range of genres.
According to Dr Scholes, the presence of a male peer who enjoys reading can broaden boys’ experiences of masculinity, supporting engagement and better reading outcomes. She said that many students attribute boys’ popularity to athletic ability, “coolness” and toughness.
Popularity in disadvantaged schools was also associated with anti-reading identities. Boys who stepped outside constructed stereotypes risked marginalisation.
Many of the boys connected with reading materials that are not traditionally sanctioned in schools, such as magazines. Schools emphasis’ on certain genres, such as literary fiction, can be limiting for boys who have developed such an affinity. As such, Dr Scholes said it is important to support a broader view of what kinds of texts are valuable to encourage reading for pleasure.
“To widen students’ experiences as readers, she said, teachers may also need to challenge current views of gender,” she said.
“Teachers are in ideal position to expand boys’ reading identities to include a repertoire that young males can aspire to and value.”
Even though not all of the boys valued reading in itself, most of them had internalised an explicit link between reading and job trajectories with a belief that reading could be a determining factor in your life because “reading will help get a job”.
“Boys’ experiences as readers in disadvantaged locales are complicated,” Dr Scholes said.
“But positive experiences of being a male reader at school and at home can support day-to-day reading, contributing to the ongoing development of reading skills, expertise and educational outcomes.”