Schools have been attempting to close the GCSE attainment gap between boys and girls for a long time. In my own secondary school, we have been focused on closing the gender gap for a number of years, and although we have made progress in some subjects, in others it’s been harder.
This raises an important point: subject-specific knowledge and pedagogy have to be applied alongside broader pedagogy if we hope to tackle gender differences in attainment.
For example, in my subject, history, it has only been in the past few years that my school has managed to close the gap significantly. And, this year, for the first time, the gap was infinitesimal.
So, how have we gotten to this point?
Ways to narrow the gender gap at GCSE
1. Identify the barriers
We started by identifying the subject-specific barriers that were having a significant impact on the outcomes of boys. While it is crucial not to generalise - because closing the gap relies on teachers knowing the boys in their class and understanding their individual barriers - there are some similarities in why different boys may underperform in our subject.
These include the quality of extended written answers and the motivation to revisit and revise content over time to meet the demands of studying four different, knowledge-heavy topics.
Having the time and motivation to practise exam questions in timed conditions is also key. The time provided for some of the GCSE history papers is arguably not quite long enough, particularly where students have to read and decode sources and historical interpretations before using these to answer questions. Getting students familiar with the demands of the exam by practising questions is therefore crucial to overall success.
Improvements in these areas rely on a dual approach: knowing our boys well enough to diagnose exactly how and why they are underperforming and the provision of high-quality history teaching.
For the latter, we knew we needed to start at the beginning. So, we revisited our curriculum and assessment at key stage 3, carefully planning lessons and homework.
2. Start at key stage 3
We restructured our KS3 curriculum to make it more challenging, carefully weaving in teaching of key concepts - such as democracy, communism and capitalism - that would lead to better understanding of KS4 topics, such as Weimar and Nazi Germany, and the Cold War and super-power relations.
We also made written work a focus at KS3. At this point, when the stakes are lower, students have more time to play around with structure: for example, by using Post-it notes to organise ideas into themes, and practising using phrases such as “most importantly” to make judgements and express historical thinking.
By raising the bar for all students at KS3, we laid the foundations for higher attainment at KS4, helping to close the gap.
3. Build confidence in revision
At KS4, we then build on the skills and knowledge acquired at KS3 to address the common barriers previously identified.
We set regular homework that is designed to get students to retrieve content and practise exam questions, and closely monitor the completion of this from the start of the GCSE course.
For boys who we know will struggle, that monitoring is relentless - as is the praise and enthusiasm when they meet deadlines and complete work to a high standard. This supports the creation of effective study habits in history that will stand students in good stead for their final exams.
We have also taken steps to remove specific barriers to the completion of homework, revision and practice exam questions. These include not having revision resources to hand, being overwhelmed by the amount of revision resources (for our GCSE course, students might need four separate revision books) or becoming overwhelmed by the complexity of exam questions.
Read more:
To tackle these issues, we have adopted a uniform approach to revision: students complete similar activities in booklets where materials are all in one place. This creates familiarity and builds confidence in revision being achievable.
We’ve also created revision videos that talk students through the process of retrieving knowledge, taking notes and then answering exam questions on a range of topics. These videos mimic the activities in the revision booklets, but provide support in an alternative way.
Using our whole-school systems of praise and consequence, we communicate regularly with parents to praise effort and success in homework and revision, while also alerting them to poor habits quickly, so that these can be addressed.
This helps to strengthen relationships between home and school, and ensures that there is a collaborative approach to student success.
4. Scaffold judgement
Our approach to improving extended writing involves scaffolding and modelling - preferably through live modelling answers, to better explain the desired approach.
However, an important part of extended answers for history GCSE is supported judgement: in other words, being able to express your own judgement and support that with evidence.
This can be intimidating for students because they have to put their opinions “out there”. In history, there are also often multiple possible responses, but no right answers, and students can find this overwhelming.
Getting students to discuss ideas in pairs, or using digital tools such as Google Forms to collate responses and anonymise answers, has helped us to build classroom environments where individual opinions are valued and students can gain the confidence to convey their judgements in written responses.
Building positive relationships
Providing time in department meetings to collaboratively plan, share best practice and communicate home to parents has supported successful and consistent implementation of the strategies described above.
But all of this also relies on fostering the positive relationships that are the bedrock of any intervention. Whether that’s through greeting students warmly at the door, or using targeted questioning to provide opportunities for them to experience success, without those relationships, we would never have been able to close the gap as much as we have.
Emma Smith is head of history and research and pedagogy lead at Heathfield Community College in East Sussex
For the latest research, pedagogy and practical classroom advice delivered directly to your inbox every week, sign up to our Teaching Essentials newsletter
