| Title |
Bellamy, Korie MED 2025 |
| Alternative Title |
Male Students in Crisis: How Teachers are Experiencing and Addressing the Male Academic Performance Gap |
| Creator |
Bellamy, Korie |
| Contributors |
Grote, Dustin |
| Collection Name |
Master of Education |
| Abstract |
Male students in the United States consistently under perform relative to their female peers across nearly every educational benchmark, from early literacy to college completion. While national graduation data highlight persistent disparities, less is known about how teachers themselves experience and respond to these patterns within their classrooms. This study employed a sequential explanatory mixed-methods design to examine the high school graduation gap by biological sex in Utah and to investigate how teachers perceive and address these differences.; The quantitative phase analyzed 2023-2024 graduation data from the Utah State Board of Education. Results confirmed a statewide gap of 4.1 percentage points favoring female students, mirroring the national trend. District-level variation was evident, with Tooele School District reporting the widest gap (11.0%) and Jordan School District among the narrowest (2.4%). These two districts were subsequently selected for qualitative exploration.; The qualitative phase involved six semi-structured interviews with high school teachers across the two districts. Thematic analysis identified five recurring patterns: (1) male apathy and disengagement, (2) female persistence and organizational strength, (3) instructional adaptations, (4) socio-cultural barriers to male engagement, and (5) resistance to explicitly gender-targeted pedagogy. Surprisingly, despite wide disparities in graduation statistics, teachers in both high- and low-gap districts described remarkably similar classroom experiences, suggesting that the male achievement gap manifests more as a widespread classroom phenomenon than a district-specific issue.; These findings highlight a central tension: teachers recognize sex-linked patterns of engagement and persistence but hesitate to frame instructional changes as gender-specific. Instead, strategies such as chunking assignments, embedding hands-on activities, and providing multiple assessment options were described as universal supports that nonetheless proved particularly effective for disengaged male students.; The study underscores the need for improved sex-disaggregated data reporting, professional development focused on engagement strategies, and further research into socio-cultural influences on male academic persistence. |
| Subject |
Education, Elementary; Education, Secondeary; Education, Higher; Education--Research--Methodology |
| Digital Publisher |
Digitized by Special Collections & University Archives, Stewart Library, Weber State University. |
| Date |
2025-10 |
| Medium |
theses |
| Type |
Text |
| Access Extent |
46 page pdf; 603 KB |
| Conversion Specifications |
Adobe Acrobat |
| Language |
eng |
| Rights |
The author has granted Weber State University Archives a limited, non-exclusive, royalty-free license to reproduce his or her thesis, in whole or in part, in electronic or paper form and to make it available to the general public at no charge. The author |
| Source |
University Archives Electronic Records: Master of Education. Stewart Library, Weber State University |
| Format |
application/pdf |
| ARK |
ark:/87278/s6wm6zyv |
| Setname |
wsu_smt |
| ID |
156004 |
| Reference URL |
https://digital.weber.edu/ark:/87278/s6wm6zyv |
