Teaching Boys Who Struggle in School: Strategies That Turn Underachievers into Successful Learners, April/2011

Rather than sounding false alarms about a genderwide crisis in boys’ academic achievement, here’s a book that cuts through the confusion to explain why some boys struggle in school and how you can effectively intervene without jeopardizing the achievements of other, more successful, learners (boys and girls). Drawing from large-scale studies, recent insights on social and learning-style factors, and lesson plans and anecdotes from real teachers, Cleveland equips you with a flexible and practical framework for addressing the needs of struggling male students that:

Replaces underachieving boys’ negative attitudes about learning.

Reconnects boys to school, learning, and believing in being a competent learner.

Rebuilds learning skills that lead to success in school and in life.

Reduces the need for unproductive and distracting behaviors as a means of self-protection.

Instead of looking for a one-size-fits-all-boys solution, explore ways to identify and respond to specific reasons for underachievement among boys who fall behind and stay behind, boys who drop out too soon, and boys you just never seem to reach. This total solution helps you address

The influence of nonacademic factors on academic success.

Factors contributing to the experience of school.

How competence can enhance persistence.

How the classroom’s physical arrangement affects a learner’s success.

Each aspect of this book’s approach offers you a way to move underachieving boys from a position of weakness toward one of strength—giving them the tools to succeed in school and beyond.