With the emphasis nowadays on equal opportunities, I am curious to know why some co-educational schools still have very different rules for boys and girls concerning clothing, appearance, subject choices and even names.
In my experience, girls tend to be more vociferous in expressing their disagreements with a particular rule whereas boys often suffer in silence.
I am particularly concerned about those whose parents have forced them into a regime which is totally unsuitable and where the head and staff view such needs as weakness.
Few boys whose needs are different are fortunate enough to be educated within the female system where the aesthetic, subjects and approach are more suited to their specific needs.
A new way of thinking, if not legislation, is needed to address such issues and perhaps The TES might consider a wider spectrum of debate and in so doing eliminate this “one size fits all” attitude of our educational system towards boys.
Lesley Deane 2 Merlin Mead Basingstoke Hampshire
