I have a hyperbolic tongue. it catches fire as it goes.
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Mar 31 • 10 tweets • 2 min read
🧵 Big news today: Netflix drama Adolescence will be shown in all UK secondary schools to help tackle the influence of toxic online figures like Andrew Tate. As a teacher—and someone who’s worked closely with teenage boys—I’ve got thoughts. A thread 👇 🧵
The show follows a 13-year-old boy accused of stabbing a classmate. It explores misogyny, online radicalisation, and the influence of male figures like Tate. It’s bold, and it’s necessary. But it also raises some serious concerns.
Jul 4, 2024 • 13 tweets • 4 min read
🧵 BEYOND ANDREW TATE: 10 MALE INFLUENCERS PARENTS AND TEACHERS NEED TO BE AWARE OF🧵
A thread. Read on 👇 1. ADCGuy
Who? TikTokker
What? Men's Rights Activist (MRA)
Believes: Men are victims of society's unfair opinions of them. Rape and Violence Against Women & Girls (VAWG) isn't the problem people say it is.
⚠️ he's clever and articulate. Skews stats to make his point.
Jun 26, 2024 • 21 tweets • 5 min read
🧵 Ofsted Inspections and Sexual Harassment: a thread for people working in schools 🧵
Sexual harassment is very much on Ofsted's agenda. Here's what you need to know.
Say what you like about Ofsted, but tackling the scourge child-on-child sexual harassment (SH) is something they really care about. Increasingly, a teachers are getting in touch to tell me that during inspection, children were asked about sexual harassment by Ofsted inspectors.
Jun 7, 2024 • 13 tweets • 3 min read
🧵 FRAGILE MASCULINITY, SEXISM AND HOMOPHOBIA: A THREAD FOR PARENTS AND TEACHERS 🧵
It's never easy to hear rank sexism or homophobia, particularly if it's from boys or men we care about.
I've just read an interesting study into this and I want to tell you about it...
So in 2017, researchers gave 166 straight blokes, a survey with questions about their own masculinity, how important their masculinity was and any anti-gay attitudes they might have or not have.
Then it gets interesting...
Jun 5, 2024 • 18 tweets • 3 min read
🧵IMPROVING BOYS WRITING 🧵
I've taught a lot of boys a lot of writing over the years. Here's a few tips to get boys writing, better. 1. THE DOT
Research has shown that those things that are conducive to academic success- hard work, perseverance, organisation - are seen by students as inherently female traits, and as such, the reverse is true for boys.
May 7, 2024 • 11 tweets • 2 min read
🧵 'LOOKSMAXXING': A guide for teachers and parents. 🧵
Warning: a bit gory
Let me tell you about Looksmaxxing: the toxic trend telling lads that in order to look good, they need to smash the bones in their face. Yep. Smash the bones in their face.
The term LooksMaxxing, refers to the process of maximising one’s physical attractiveness in order to be more sexually appealing to women. The phrase has direct links to incel culture and the manosphere and is a popular TikTok trend among teenagers.
May 5, 2024 • 13 tweets • 3 min read
🧵 SUPERHERO MOVIES AND MASCULINITY 🧵
This morning I came across as fun study from 2022 that looked at presentations of masculinity in superhero movies.
Given the genre's hulk-like grip on popular culture, I thought I'd share some highlights...
So, the study got a LOAD of Superhero movies and counted 'Total Instances of Masculinity Themes' in each.
So we now know that the manliest superhero movie out there is 'Avengers: Age of Ultron (304 incidences)'.
The least masculine? Dr Strange and Guardians Galaxy vol.2 (75)
May 4, 2024 • 17 tweets • 3 min read
🧵 BOYS AND TEACHER HUMOUR 🧵
Boys have a complex relationship with humour, what with banter etc, but I'm going to try and keep this thread short and focused on teacher use of humour to build relationships. Ready?
Firstly, know that humour works with boys. Studies show that the use of humour is important for boys in forging relationships.
Also, a study from Japan showed that specific types of teacher humour is really good for student mental health AND teacher-pupil relationships.
May 2, 2024 • 8 tweets • 2 min read
🧵 MEWING: A GUIDE FOR PARENTS AND TEACHERS 🧵
Mewing is another trend that can be added to the growing list of crazes gripping the imagination of boys up and down the country. Read on to find out what it is and why we need to be concerned about it...
A huge trend on TikTok, Mewing is the act of flattening the tongue against the upper palate of the mouth in order to ‘improve’ bone structure and give young boys the square, hatchet jawline that they’ve been made to believe is essential to appearing attractive to others.
May 1, 2024 • 19 tweets • 4 min read
🧵 SIGMA MALES: A GUIDE FOR PARENTS AND TEACHERS 🧵
Lots of people have got in touch to tell me they’d like to know a little more about Sigma males because the term ‘Sigma’ is something lots of teenage boys are mentioning in schools.
So here we go... 👇
In order to understand what a Sigma Male is, it’s important that we remind ourselves of what an Alpha Male is.
An Alpha male is a man who holds a position of dominance over less powerful males (beta males).
Apr 28, 2024 • 14 tweets • 2 min read
🧵 MANOSPHERE & INCELS: A glossary for teachers and parents 🧵
MANOSPHERE (noun)
The name given to websites, blogs and forums ostensibly dedicated to supporting men with relationships, health and fitness, mental health and legal wranglings. Also a place of radicalisation with a dark underbelly.
Apr 13, 2024 • 21 tweets • 3 min read
🧵 Teaching Texts Featuring Suicide 🧵
Content: suicide
Do you teach Romeo and Juliet? Macbeth? An Inspector Calls?
Here's a thread of how to teach texts featuring suicide, responsibly. Please share widely!
Thousands of teachers up and down the country are teaching texts featuring suicide to young people, often with ZERO training on how to discuss suicide appropriately.
This guidance has been created by me and features in my book, 'Boys Do Cry.'
Apr 11, 2024 • 20 tweets • 4 min read
🧵Building a future for Young Men in the Construction Industry: A Thread for Teachers🧵
Content: suicide
You may already be aware that men are three times more likely than women to die by suicide. But...
...did you know that men in the Construction industry are ‘at some of the highest risk of suicide in the country, at 3.7 times higher than the national average’.
It's true. Look:
As I reflect cringingly on a weekend of overzealous tweeting during a time of emotional instability, I remember this Australian study that asked 251 suicidal men, what they said to let ppl know they were in crisis. 👇
Link to study:
Some people theorise that phrases such as 'I'm feeling unloved', or 'I have butterflies in my stomach all the time', are 'feminised' and therefore less likely to be used by men.bmjopen.bmj.com/content/bmjope…
Apr 5, 2024 • 13 tweets • 2 min read
🧵 'Bigorexia': The anxiety disorder affecting 1 in 10 young gymgoers in the UK - A thread for teachers and parents 🧵
Content Information: contains reference to eating disorders
'Bigorexia' - also known as muscle dysmorphia - is an anxiety disorder that leads someone to believe that they are too small or skinny, and/or that they are never muscly enough.
Sufferers become fixated on gaining muscle...
Apr 3, 2024 • 13 tweets • 2 min read
🧵 PORNOGRAPHY AND MALE ADOLESCENT BODY IMAGE 🧵
Want to know how pornography could actually be improving boys' relationships with their bodies?
Then read on...
In all honesty, there's not a lot of research on adolescent body image and pornography. But there is SOME stuff...
Mar 29, 2024 • 8 tweets • 2 min read
🧵 Boys and Bullshit 🧵
Bullshitters are people who 'claim knowledge or expertise in area where they actually have little experience or skills.'
Boys are excellent bullshitters, and teachers need to know this.
Allow me to explain...
In this study👇from 2019, researchers used PISA data to assess the extent to which students bullshit.
A 2012 PISA test from asked 15yos to rate their knowledge of 16 mathematical concepts. For example, 'Exponential function', 'Divisor' & 'Vector'docs.iza.org/dp12282.pdf
Mar 21, 2024 • 14 tweets • 3 min read
🧵TEACHING BOYS TO CARE 🧵
I've never liked the emphasis put on absent fathers as damaging to children's development and behaviour; It does disservice to the millions of mothers, grandmothers, sisters and female carers working their arses off to provide for their kids...
(1/X)
SO, this recent report which reviews the literature on the impact of fathers on non-violence by masculinities genius Professor Flood was something I had to read.
We tell young men that backing out of a fight is the right thing to do.
(1/5)
And it might be, for us, but in the playground, streets or ends, backing out comes at a considerable cost to your social status. Boys who back out face humiliation, shame and piss-taking.
(2/5)
Mar 1, 2024 • 7 tweets • 1 min read
🧵 How to reduce workload in your dept 🧵
1. ONE DAY A WEEK IS TEXT BOOK DAY.
One day a week where students learn from high quality texts books means teachers get a planning-free day
2. REDUCE SUMMATIVE ASSESSMENTS DOWN TO NO MORE THAN 3 PER YEAR
Actually THINK about assessment properly and design robust assessments that test as wide a domain of knowledge (from EVERYTHING previously learned) in an efficient way as possible
Apr 29, 2023 • 4 tweets • 1 min read
A quick thread on An Inspector Calls, Blame and Suicide...
Lots of teachers/lessons ask the question: 'Who is to blame for Eva's Suicide?'
This question should NOT be asked.
Why? Let me explain...
Aftermath blame talk - talk which dwells on people who may be responsible for a suicide - can exacerbate suicidal ideation because it makes people experiencing suicidal thoughts feel burdensome of guilty.