Boys have been underperforming in school since public schools were created, but not in such high numbers as today. Before and immediately after World War II, boys were academically as successful as girls. Only in the past two decades has there been marked differences -- sometimes by as many as 20 grade points between girls and boys across race and economic boundaries, according to the Government of Australia. Intelligence is not decreasing in society, so other factors are behind these trends.
While teen crime is decreasing, boys in schools are increasingly being punished and given more detention. This in turn not only demotivates young men, but also keeps them out of the classroom, where most learning occurs. The classroom in most schools is designed to be a lecture-based hour of sitting and listening, whereas boys in the early and middle years of puberty are physically designed to learn more kinetically, while taking emotional and social risks, Moving about and risk-taking, however, are discouraged and prohibited in most classrooms, and boys feel out of place and even rejected by the institution. It is often these behaviors -- active, engaged, moving, risk-taking -- that are rewarded in the workplace. Theorists such as Draves and Shneider argue that today's schools were designed to mold young people for the drudgery of factory work, and few boys today want this lifestyle.
Schools are typically behind the curve when it comes to technology, while young people of both genders are on the cutting edge. Teachers sometimes hesitant to try new things, often overlook opportunities to fully engage their students with multi-faceted technology, while boys are often immediately engaged and socially cooperative when hands-on technology is used. Although boys and men have traditionally led in technological development and current trends continue to see more men engaged in computers, alternative energy technologies, and biochemical industries, schools continue to emphasize rote memorization of history, government, language, literature and similar curricula, leading some boys to think that school does not offer the training they need for their interests. Some lose motivation; some quit altogether.
During the ages when boys are in middle and high school, their cognitive and emotional development runs counter to the institutional setting. Many boys want to be physically active, and many will grow to be men who enjoy labor and outdoor work. Instead, their schools expect them to be quiet and sit still for several hours a day, sitting at a cold hard desk with little stimulation. Then, as they grow older, some boys realize that they can make money by working and choose to quit school and become they can achieve some of the independence that the school seeks to subdue. Similarly, boys choose play as a means of discovery during these stages. A hundred years ago, play involved machinery; today it involves electronics and game. Most schools, however, still choose to use the lecture method as a means to discovery.
Recognizing institutional and curricular limitations, some educational leaders propose that boys be provided with a more job-centric, real curriculum that engages and challenges them while still leading to productive citizenship. Some schools have changed their institutional structure and created separate girls classes and boys classes, recognizing different cognitive and social behavior while maintaining equal learning standards. Including advanced technology as both tool and object of instruction satisfies the natural curiosity of boys of all ages while developing real-world skill sets.