Gender gap is getting wider

It is common for girls to do better at school work than boys.

Differences in academic achievement between Rotorua's boys and girls is present across all year levels, but local educators say they are working hard to close the gender gap.

Ministry of Education figures show, while educational achievement of local students has improved over the past six years, the gender divide has increased.

Nationwide, the gap between girls and boys closed by 2.8 per cent over the six-year period, but in Rotorua it widened by 3.6 per cent.

Rotorua Lakes High School acting principal Jo Sturme said the school was aware of the divide between boys and girls and was working hard to make sure its boys had good opportunities.

She said boys were more likely than girls to struggle with writing skills so the school had a cross-curricular approach to writing structures, meaning students didn't need to learn a new structure in each subject.

John Paul College principal Patrick Walsh said the achievement gap between boys and girls was a trend seen in many schools across the country and was partly attributed to NCEA.

"It is argued NCEA is better suited to female learners with it's emphasis on internal assessments throughout the year. Girls, typically, have better time management skills and excel at assessments handed in throughout the year, compared with their male peers."

John Paul College offers both NCEA and Cambridge International Examinations to its students.

"We have a smaller group of students taking the Cambridge exams but I think it is important to provide as many qualifications as we can to ensure each student has the best opportunity to achieve," Mr Walsh said.

He said teachers were working hard to recognise different learning styles and create lessons that were not just "talk and chalk". "Many boys favour hands-on learning and teachers are recognising the need to have more interactive lessons to engage the male students and close that achievement gap."

Owhata School principal Bob Stiles said the gender divide was also seen at a primary school level.

"It has been common for girls to do better in subjects like reading and writing so, at Owhata, we have been proactive in trying to raise the boys' achievement in those subjects.

"In the last couple of years in particular, we have been trying to make writing and reading exercises more exciting for boys so they want to engage.

"Since then we have seen an improvement in their achievement and will continue to assess and alter lessons until the gender gap closes."

Ministry of Education associate deputy secretary for student achievement, Lesley Hoskin, said nationally boys were slowly closing the gap on girls in terms of NCEA achievement.

"Girls are still performing strongly, but boys are making good gains." Additional reporting Kim Fulton