Me Read? No, Way! A pratical guide to improving boys' literacy skills

Strategies for SuccessBe in their cornerThe role of the teacher in boys’ literacyResearch on effective literacy instruction conducted by Alvermann (2001) at the Universityof Georgia has shown that teachers enhance students’ sense of competence and self-worthwhen they are able to convince students that they care about them as individuals and wantthem to learn. Teacher input, stimulation, and encouragement are important factors inhelping boys develop into successful readers and writers.“[Australian author] Steve Biddulph believes that boys learn teachersand not subjects. Girls are able to connect directly with subjects, but aboy can only connect with a subject via the teacher. . . . This hasmajor ramifications for schools but it reinforces that the teacher isparamount to successful learning for . . . boys.“The background to this phenomenon is based on the need for boys intheir puberty years to believe that a teacher cares for them as aperson, before they will allow the teacher to impart knowledge orskills to them.”(Pickup, 2001, p. 2)“If we, as teachers, do not look forward to our lessons and do not getexcited about learning then we can hardly expect our students to doso. If we, as teachers, are not passionate about our subject then wecannot expect to [inspire passion in] others. It has been myexperience that the cynical adolescent pose is merely a thin veneerand that what lies beneath is a desire to safely give vent to thosefeelings of excitement and enthusiasm as they discover the world.English teachers can provide important role models of people who areunashamedly passionate about words, books, poetry, drama, andabove all, their work.”(Cullen, n.d., p. 4)46