Year: 2011
Type: article
Abstract: ABSTRACT: The construction of boys as a gendered culture is not usually associated with neuroscience. Exceptions are publications and presentations by consultants on boys ’ education who adopt a “brain-based ” perspective. From a neuroscience perspective, my analysis indicates the selective use of primary neuroscience research to construct and perpetuate generalisations and stereotypic representations of boys as a gendered culture. In this article I draw on data obtained over 12 months from a boys ’ school that engaged a consultant on boys ’ education. The consultant selectively used neuroscience to construct a hegemonic discourse that constructed boys as a gendered culture. I analyse the consultant’s professional learning sessions, question the veracity of populist claims presented to teachers and indicate the degree to which this discourse about boys ’ literacy ability and behaviour influenced the school as they revised their language policy and made commercial decisions. My observations suggest that, over the course of a year, the school uncritically accepted sufficient popular interpretations of primary neuroscience research to fulfil their intention of building a marketable, gendered school culture. I further note the existence of a parallel cognitive discourse around principles of learning that influenced teacher pedagogy. These two discourses allowed the school to meet its aims of i) building a gendered educational culture at a school for boys, ii) placing the school in a competitive education market (both primarily based on the discourse of neuroscience) and iii) meeting the educational needs of their students (based primarily on the discourse of cognitive psychology).
Author: David Whitehead
Language: English
Subfield: Cognitive Neuroscience
Field: Neuroscience
Domain: Life Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W2162803444