Ideas for Boys' Educators

Check out the articles below for ideas on best practices to equip boys with the tools they need to lead fulfilling lives. We hope you'll share your experience with our global community. Please send your ideas to janicki@theibsc.org. Thank you.

Fact Sheet: Helping Boys Pay Attention 
From the Society for the Psychology of Men and Masculinities Division 51 of the American Psychological Association, this fact sheet developed by Mark Dowley with support from task force and advisory committee members examines why boys disproportionately struggle with attention in the classroom—with boys responsible for up to 80% of classroom disruptions and twice as likely to be diagnosed with ADHD. The resource explores multiple contributing factors including smartphone-driven attention fragmentation, excessive video game use and its impact on adolescent brain development, and masculinity pressures that frame paying attention and learning as "feminine" endeavors.

The Adolescent Man Box 
"The Adolescent Man Box survey was conducted with 1,401 young people aged between 14-18 years, of all genders, in March-April 2025. The study asked Australian teenagers about their beliefs in relation to how teenage boys should act, and about a range of attitudes, behaviours and experiences. This report shines a light on the realities of what it means to be a teenage boy in Australia today. It highlights both promising signs and critical challenges that must be addressed if we are to support boys in leading fulfilling lives – free from violence and other harmful behaviours." Read the full report on the Jesuit Social Services website.

Boys in the Digital Wild: Online Culture, Identity, and Well-Being
"Common Sense Media conducted a nationally representative survey of 1,017 adolescent boys age 11 to 17 across the United States in July 2025 to understand how digital environments shape masculine identity development during adolescence. The study examined boys' engagement patterns across social media platforms and gaming communities, their exposure to online masculinity content and influencers, and how these digital experiences relate to their emotional well-being, self-esteem, and real-world relationships."

The Real Face of Men’s Health
Explore this landmark report from Movember on the state of men's health in the US, its impact on partners, families, and communities, and the bold, community-led solutions that could lead to a brighter future.

Promises and Pitfalls of Single-Sex Education 
Published May 2025 

Nina Hankins conducted this study as part of the program of professional education at the Goldman School of Public Policy, University of California at Berkeley. The American Institute for Boys and Men commissioned the report. Posted here with her permission, the report examines single-sex education as a potential policy intervention to address academic and social challenges faced by boys, particularly those from low-income backgrounds and communities of color. Through comprehensive literature review and expert interviews, this report investigates whether single-sex schooling represents an effective strategy to improve educational outcomes for boys without disadvantaging girls in the education system. The research includes interviews with IBSC Executive Director Tom Batty and The Boys' Latin School of Maryland Headmaster Chris Post, former IBSC board chair.

Educating Boys
Read the article that IBSC Executive Director Tom Batty wrote, published in August 2025 by Yorkshire Living and several other magazines in the United Kingdom.

Letter to the Editor of The West Australian 
Read the letter to the editor that IBSC Executive Director Tom Batty sent to The West Australian in March 2024. It is awaiting publication.

Letter to the Editor of The Weekend Australian 
Read the letter to the editor that IBSC Executive Director Tom Batty sent to The Weekend Australian in response to and support of the article Boys Still Falling Through the Cracks by Education Editor Natasha Bita published November 25, 2023.

Patterns and Developments in Single-Sex Schools 
Catholic Schools New South Wales posted this discussion paper from the Kathleen Burrow Research Institute in September 2023. The paper provides a new analysis of enrollment trends and academic outcomes in single-sex schools in Australia.

Letter to the Editor of The Washington Post 
Read the letter to the editor that IBSC Executive Director Tom Batty sent to The Washington Post in response to the article Men are lost. Here’s a map out of the wilderness by columnist Christine Emba published July 10, 2023. 

Letter to the Editor of The Spectator
Read the letter to the editor that IBSC Executive Director Tom Batty sent to The Spectator in response to the article Why Boys Fall Behind, written by Richard V. Reeves and published online October 15, 2022.

Letter to the Editor of The Atlantic Regarding Redshirting Boys
Read the letter to the editor that IBSC Executive Director Tom Batty sent to The Atlantic in response to the article Redshirt the Boys: Why Boys Should Start School a Year Later Than Girls, written by Richard V. Reeves and published online and in the October 2022 print edition of the magazine.

Turning Boys of All Ages into Lifelong Readers 
Margaret Merga draws on recent research to explain how we can best encourage boys of all ages to become lifelong readers. Her article appears in the Education Hub of New Zealand.

Sexual Consent Resources 
Author Tim Hawkes, former headmaster of The King's School (Australia), shares resources on the vital topic of sexual consent.

Through the Pandemic and Beyond: What Will Sustain Independent Schools? 
Webinar Recording from February 9, 2021
What practices and trends will sustain schools through the rest of this pandemic and help them emerge with a healthy velocity? Watch a panel of education innovators discuss the issues, lessons, and strategies that will carry us through the pandemic and beyond.

Special COVID-19 Webinar Recording
More than 30 education associations in North America joined forces to host a webinar attended by over 2,000 people to help schools struggling to survive the current crisis. Now the recording and slides are available to help those who missed the live session.

Boys' Schools: Beginning a New Conversation
In his address at the annual St. Albans School (United States) Parent Dinner, Headmaster Jason Robinson called for a new conversation about the promise and potential of boys schools in today’s world.

The Power of Relational Engagement to Transform Elementary School Boys
In this article Richard Hawley and Linda Rohler share the importance of relational teaching in the younger years. Students’ willingness to engage in and master school challenges reflects the depth of their teachers’ commitment to the twin crafts of classroom management and instruction. Boys are most inclined to relate to teachers whose care for them is inseparable from their commitment to their work. Personal warmth is essential, but it is not enough.

Achievement in New Zealand Boys' Schools 2010–12
The New Zealand Council for Education Research conducted this report at the request of the Association of Boys’ Schools New Zealand (ABSNZ). The data show a trend nationwide for boys who are in boys’ schools achieving better academic results than those in coeducational schools across the whole of New Zealand, in all deciles and in all ethnicities, including NZ European, Asian, Maori, and Pasifika. Watch for an update to the research coming soon in 2018.

Boys Will Be the Boys We Raise
There’s poetry written in the heart of a boy. Sometimes with enough coaxing and patience, it bubbles up reluctantly in halting lines and clipped stanzas; sometimes it springs forth in sudden floods of joy or sorrow. More often, the words huddle deep amid the testosterone-fueled confusion of adolescence, yearning to be heard, yet suppressed in stoic silence. In solitude. The hearts of many men are not so different. Perhaps we — educators and parents of boys — can do better at interpreting the verses and building the rhymes. Read more.

The Boys Could Be All Right: Rethinking the Corrective to Violent Behavior
In this compelling article, Richard Hawley demonstrates that the better boy is not only possible — he is out there. Earlier or later in his life, someone came to know and care for him. There could be more of him. He could be normative. Founding President of International Boys’ Schools Coalition, Hawley is also Headmaster Emeritus, University School (United States).

Leading and Learning with Boys Today
Kerry Brennan, The Roxbury Latin School (United States); Bradford Gioia, Montgomery Bell Academy (United States); Byron Hulsey, Woodberry Forest School (United States); and IBSC Executive Director David Armstrong gave this presentation on March 8, in Atlanta at the 2018 NAIS Annual Conference. In it they focused on the best ways to lead, engage, and support boys in today’s society. They invited attendees to engage in the conversation to encourage boys’ growth as citizens and individuals so they are virtuous, kind, and exceptional leaders.