Girls do better at school

[00:00.11] Around the world, girls do better than boys at school.

[00:03.86] These are the findings of a recent study that looked at the test results of 1.5 million 15-year-olds in 74 regions across the globe.

[00:14.63] The level of gender equality in those regions made no difference to the results.

[00:19.64] Other factors, such as the income level of the region also had little impact on the findings.

[00:26.40] In only three regions - Colombia, Costa Rica and the Indian state Himachal Pradesh - was the trend reversed with boys doing better.

[00:37.42] So what are the causes of girls' stronger performance?

[00:41.68] In the UK, girls outperform boys in exams that are taken at the age of 15 or 16, called GCSEs.

[00:49.94] According to education expert Ian Toone, this is down to the way girls and boys are brought up.

[00:57.46] "Boys are encouraged to be more active from an early age, whereas the restless movements of baby girls are pacified...

[01:04.97] Hence, girls develop the skill of sitting still for longer periods of time, which is useful for academic pursuits like studying for GCSEs."

[01:15.24] He goes on to say that boys often cluster together in larger groups than girls.

[01:20.50] Because of this they are more likely to be influenced by peer pressure and develop a gang mentality.

[01:27.51] He says that GCSEs require a lot of solo work and are not viewed as 'cool' in a laddish culture.

[01:35.52] This is backed up by research in the UK that says girls are out-performing boys at the age of five.

[01:43.29] So what is the answer? Should girls and boys be educated separately?

[01:48.55] Or do exams and school curricula need to be changed to better reflect boys' skills?

[01:54.81] These are the questions facing educators in many countries.