Discourses of Schooling, Constructions of Masculinity, and Boys' Noncompletion of Secondary School in North Queensland, Australia

The educational experiences of rural young people are those of less success than their urban counterparts on a number of counts. Their participation in education at age 16, their school retention to year 12, and their participation in higher education are all lower than for urban youth; their achievement outcomes are also lower (Higher Education Council, 1999; Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission, 2000; Kenyon, Sercombe, Black, & Lhuede, 2001). Since educational participation and achievement contribute to employment and income prospects, and minimize the frequency and duration of unemployment, these lower rates for rural young people are a matter of concern (Ainley & McKenzie, 1999; Spierings, 1999). More generally, this imbalance has implications for Australia's National Goals for Schooling, the "intellectual, physical, social, moral, spiritual and aesthetic development" of rural young people (Ministerial Council on Education, Employment, Training and Youth Affairs [MCEETYA], 1999), especially in the context of contemporary economic, social, and cultural change (Youth Pathways Action Plan Taskforce, 2001).