Why are boys under-performing in education? Gender analysis of four Asia-Pacific countries

The EFA-MDA Gender Equality in Education Progress Note (UNICEF, 2009) analysis revealed that boys’ enrolment rates were significantly lower than those of girls in Malaysia, Mongolia, the Philippines and Thailand. In 2011, the East Asia and Pacific Regional United Nations Girls’ Education Initiative (EAP UNGEI) undertook a research review to investigate the issue of boys’ underperformance in these four countries. The review was based on the premise that the factors that contribute to boys’ underperformance should not be overlooked and deserve further investigation in order to provide the basis for policies and interventions to achieve gender equality. Given the wide variations across countries in underperformance indicators, this report takes a broad view of ‘underperformance’: In the country‐specific reports, evidence for boys’ underperformance comes from data pertaining to enrolment, retention, participation, achievement, survival to and through secondary education, and a host of other, nationally pertinent factors. The objectives of this study are to: - Understand why boys have been underperforming in education over the past few years; - Analyse factors (including economic, societal, and cultural) that are causing the trend of poor performance and low survival rates at higher levels of education; and - Describe current policies and interventions in place to address the issue.