Issues surrounding boys'"underachievement" have been at the center of public debate about education and the raising of standards in recent years. Media and political responses to the "problem of boys" have tended to be simplistic, partial, and owe more to quick fixes than investigation and research. This book provides a detailed, nuanced case study of the issues in the United Kingdom, which will be of international relevance, as the moral panic is a globalized one, taking place in diverse countries. The book is divided into four parts: (1) "Boys' Underachievement in Context"; (2) "Different Constructions of the Debate and Its Undercurrents"; (3) "Boys, Which Boys?"; and (4) "Curriculum, Assessment and the Debate." Papers grouped under Part 1 are: (1) "Schoolboy Frictions: Feminism and 'Failing' Boys" (D. Epstein, J. Elwood, V. Hey, and J. Maw); and (2) "'A Habit of Healthy Idleness': Boys' Underachievement in Historical Perspective" (M. Cohen). Studies grouped under Part 2 are: (3) "Girls Will Be Girls and Boys Will Be First" (P. Mahony); "'Zero Tolerance': Gender Performance and School Failure" (L. R. Reed); (5) "Breaking out of the Binary Trap: Boys' Underachievement, Schooling and Gender Relations" (D. Jackson); and (6) "Real Boys Don't Work: 'Underachievement,' Masculinity, and the Harassment of 'Sissies'" (D. Epstein). Studies grouped under Part 3 are: (7) "Loose Canons: Exploding the Myth of the 'Black Macho' Lad" (T. Sewell); and (8) "Boys' Underachievement, Special Needs Practices and Questions of Equity" (V. Hey, D. Leonard, H. Daniels, and M. Smith). Studies grouped under Part 4 are: (9) "Language and Gender: Who, If Anyone, Is Disadvantaged by What?" (J. Swann); and (10) "Gendered Learning outside and inside School: Influences on Achievement" (P. Murphy and J. Elwood). (BT)