Sharing Good Practice
3 simple steps to engage
boys in the classroom
By Dr Thomas Gamboa Jr., Ed.D.
be stored in between lessons and
ensure that the Wi-Fi system in the
school is working well.
Communicate, negotiate and
celebrate
I
f you teach in the Middle East,
where schools are predominately
single sex institutions, you might
have heard it said over and over
that teaching boys is more difficult
than teaching girls. But is this true? Is
it not a just different, requiring that you
use different methods?
The ability to create learning
opportunities in a manner that take
students’ interest into account and
engages them in learning should be
a fundamental component of any
classroom. Finding activities that will
interest boys with the content, can
be challenging but it is achievable.
It is important to remember that
boys learn differently and also tend
to be more hesitant to engage in
activities that require reading and
writing. These fundamental points
need to be considered when planning
instructional activities and or lessons
to engage boys. The following three
suggested strategies could possibly
revolutionize your teaching in a
classroom filled with only boys.
Embrace chaos
Boys learn through active engagement
30 | Nov - Dec 2015 |
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with hands on activities. Set them tasks
that require them to get up, walk around
and talk to each other. Yes, I know that
the last thing you would want do is to
cause chaos in your own classroom,
but don’t fear, as along as you have an
effective way of monitoring their work
and calling the class back to order, you
will be fine. When you know your boys
a little better and you trust each other
you could even take them out of the
classroom, you might be amazed at
the quality of work they produce just
by doing their English lesson in the
gym or in another outdoor space.
Bring Your Own Device
If your school administration is
onboard and a very good ICT system
is in place, then allowing the boys to
bring their own electronic devices to
school, to be used in the teaching and
learning could pay dividends. Majority
of the boys you have in your class
own a plethora of electronic devices,
on which they spend countless hours
playing. Using these devices in their
lessons could do the trick in getting
and keeping their attention. Before
you do this please ensure that you
have planned how these devices will
Class Time
Students, especially boys need to
know what they will be learning and
why. Lessons become more of a chore
for both the teacher and the students
if the objectives are not properly
communicated. Boys are less likely
to respond well to always being to
told what to do. Some negotiation is
healthy in the classroom as it allows
the students to feel empowered.
Celebrate their achievement no matter
how small. A class Instagram account
in a boys’ school could work wonders
for your engagement levels. As long
you have the requisite permissions,
set up a class Instagram account and
literally watch as the likes and shares
increase, on your congratulatory
posts showing the excellent work
being produced by your students.
What makes Instagram so effective
is that you can also show short video
clips of classroom discussions or
of individual students mastering a
particular learning outcome.
Allow them to choose
As mentioned above, empowering
students to choose how they
demonstrate mastery of the content
can be a definite win. When designing
your lessons allow for flexibility in
the projects students can create to
show mastery. For example, allow
students to create videos, posters
and skits etc. They can also create
games or simulations, if they have the
ability to do so. Whenever possible;
embrace technology. Allow students
to use their own devices to record
videos and create their simulations.
Remember that giving your students
choice is one of the fundamentals of
providing good differentiation in your
lessons.
Boys learn differently. Embrace
their differences and facilitate their
learning by empowering them.