A recent study has revealed that girls in England report feeling less safe and more disenchanted with their education compared to pre-COVID times.

Utilizing data from an international survey of primary and secondary school students, researchers at University College London (UCL) highlighted a steep decline in emotional engagement among girls, particularly those in Year 9, aged 13 to 14. This trend is notably more pronounced than that observed among their male counterparts.

John Jerrim, a professor at UCL’s social research institute, pointed out that the findings suggest a significant impact during the pandemic, potentially due to school closures, which may have adversely affected girls' enjoyment, confidence, and peer relationships within the school environment.

He noted, "There are signs from other evidence that this may well be feeding into greater school absence rates amongst girls and impacting their educational achievement."

The survey results indicate a drastic decrease in the perception of safety at school, with only 21% of girls strongly agreeing that they feel safe in 2023, down from 43% in 2019. For boys, the decrease was also notable, falling from 41% to 31% over the same period.

In terms of belonging and pride in their school, girls’ sense of belonging decreased by 17 percentage points, and pride fell by 20 percentage points—twice as much compared to boys.

Professor Jerrim emphasized that the girls surveyed would have been in the final year of primary school during the onset of the pandemic, suggesting that the disruptions encountered at this critical transition period into secondary school could lead to lasting issues.

He stated, "There is increasing evidence that this is a particularly vulnerable time for girls."

Further research from UCL indicated that boys in Year 5 and Year 9 in England are outperforming girls in recent international assessments in subjects such as maths and science compared to pre-pandemic results.

Prior to COVID-19, girls and boys had similar rates of school absence; however, since 2020, persistent absence—defined as missing 10% or more of school sessions—has increased more among girls.

In the 2023-24 academic year, 26.8% of girls were persistently absent, compared to 24.3% of boys.

The connection between declining emotional engagement and increased absenteeism is highlighted in the study, suggesting that students who feel less engaged are more likely to miss school.

Similar declines in student attitudes have been observed in Finland, Ireland, and Sweden, while in the United States, there are growing concerns that post-pandemic behavioral issues have led to a shift in teachers' focus toward boys.

Bridget Phillipson, the education secretary, addressed the issue, referring to boys' behavior as "a defining issue of our time" and attributing some of the challenges to the impact of smartphones.

She remarked that harmful content can easily reach young people and called for more male teachers in schools, citing that only one in four teachers are men, with the number dropping to one in seven in early education settings.

Additionally, recent discussions around misogyny among school-age boys have been ignited by the Netflix series 'Adolescence.'