UK: Why boys can't keep up with the girls

Article here. Excerpt:

'But the sheer weight of numbers suggests that it must be only a matter of time before hierarchical professions such as medicine and law are "feminised" – and hopefully for the better. Could it be that the downturn in the economy places an even higher premium on good degrees in the jobs marketplace, enabling more women to launch careers that go all the way to the top? Could it be that future female leaders smash the male-dominated networks that cling onto power so successfully, limiting social mobility in the UK? It will certainly take more than a decade for this to happen.

However, we must not lose sight of the stark underperformance of boys – particularly those from the poorest backgrounds. There are deep-rooted cultural forces at play – a "macho anti-intellectualism" that surfaces particularly during early secondary school. The need for role models is absolutely key. More dads in the primary school classroom would help to combat negative stereotypes of those who do well at school – early in children's lives.'