Accounting for the Differential Attainment of Boys and Girls at School

This article considers a variety of recent research projects attempting to explain the differences in examination outcomes between boys and girls, and describes some of the policies that have been introduced to overcome the 'problem'. When viewed in the light of recent findings that change the accepted picture of what, and where, these gender gaps in attainment actually are, the article discovers that there are, as yet, no totally convincing explanations of the phenomenon, and therefore little hope of an effective strategy to deal with it. This conclusion has important implications for the conduct of research, and for the links between research and evidence-based policy, and therefore for school leaders and managers.