Boys need constant monitoring, says educator

Single-parent households, lack of father’s involvement, and a school system that is not fully designed for them are some of the major issues confronting boys, according to a study conducted by Dr. Mark Anthony Lyte, Principal of the Port Mourant Secondary School.
Dr. Lyte shared insights into the study focused on the achievements of boys during a panel discussion on Monday, titled “From Boyhood to Manhood: Unpacking, Rethinking and Reimagining Masculinity,” hosted by the University of Guyana’s Institute of Gender Studies, in collaboration with the Department of Language and Cultural Studies (FEH), and the Faculty of Education and Humanities.
Sharing that he has always been curious about why boys are seemingly “left behind,” Dr. Lyte pointed to a number of environmental factors which he noted negatively influence boys’ behaviours.
“We are aware of the challenges our boys face,” he noted as he stressed.
“We have seen, coming out of this study, that boys need constant monitoring. This should be the focus of those who are within the home circle. How do we monitor our boys?” he asked.
Dr. Lyte also indicated that an inadequate number of male teachers poses a problem.
“At the secondary school level, we observed, coming out of this study, that boys tend to be hyped at the secondary level, and this is not to discredit our females. The absence of male teachers or adequate number of male teachers present a problem with the behaviour of boys. I’m at the secondary school level and I can tell you that smoking, vaping and all of these things are happening, and if you do not monitor these things then we recognise that we will have a bigger problem,” he stressed.
According to Dr. Lyte, economic struggles, especially in cases of single-parent households, also force boys to take up premature positions.
“So many single parent homes. Boys will now have to assist. How many of our young boys are out in the weekends or in the afternoons, trying to assist mom by having a job? That affects their educational pursuit, and also the association that they develop with grown men and adults whose actions and practices may not be conducive for their age,” he said.
Dr. Lyte said that the study also found that boys prefer to study programmes that are more practically-oriented to keep them interested.
“When we think about constructing new schools, we have to pay attention to the facilities that will lend support to the programmes that boys may be interested in,” Dr. Lyte urged.
He noted also that, according to the findings of the study, boys prefer practical and oral tests, as they are often unable to express themselves through writing.
“So how do we keep our boys in school? We have to think about ways in which our boys can see education as important. And that may mean ensuring that there is a balance as it relates to our teachers, ensuring that our curriculum addresses the needs of boys, ensuring that fathers play a more critical role, and the kind of examples we set,” he noted.
The hybrid event, aimed at exploring issues related to gender, identity, and addressing the evolving definitions of masculinity, took place at the University of Guyana’s Education Lecture Theatre (ELT), Turkeyen Campus.