Crossing the Divide: bridging the disjunctures between theoretically oriented and practice-oriented literature about masculinity and boys at school

Abstract

This article tracks the disconnections and connections, junctures and disjunctures between the ‘theoretically oriented’ literature (concerned with philosophical or sociological understanding of educational contexts) and the ‘practice-oriented’ literature (concerned with the practice and procedures of teaching and learning) on boys, masculinity, and schooling. It identifies points of disjuncture and overlap between the two literatures, discusses these disjunctures, and presents the various strengths and weaknesses of each body of literature. Arguing that the two literatures have a valuable contribution to make by combining their efforts (that is, translating theory into practice terms or theorizing practice), this article gives suggestions for how both bodies of literature might be made more relevant to the other.