WCWSPR26223 Taking Boys Seriously: Lessons From Research

Taking Boys Seriously: Lessons From Research

The Taking Boys Seriously (TBS) research at Ulster University is a long-running, participatory action research project focused on improving educational outcomes for adolescent boys, particularly those facing socio-economic disadvantage.

TBS highlights how factors such as poverty, approaches in education and social constructions of masculinity can combine to create compounded educational disadvantage. Through longitudinal research involving thousands of participants, TBS has developed key concepts such as the 10 Principles of Relational Education that underpin a process of engaging in Empowering Practice with boys and young men.

In the webinar we share practical strategies to influence teaching practices, educational policy, and community-based interventions aimed to create supportive learning environments that enable boys and young men to thrive.

Presenter: Susan Morgan

Susan Morgan is an academic at Ulster University within the School of Applied Social and Policy Sciences. She is the Principal Investigator for the Taking Boys Seriously (TBS) research project, a longitudinal participatory action study aimed at addressing disparities in educational outcomes for boys from working-class communities.

The research adopts an educational ecosystem perspective to examine how compounded disadvantage including poverty, conflicting constructions of masculinity, and educational approaches shapes boys’ educational experiences. Crucially, it goes beyond analysis to identify and develop the principles and practices that actively enable boys to flourish, offering practical pathways for meaningful and sustained change.