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This paper problematises embedded notions of masculine and feminine embodiment within the contexts of contemporary Australian mainstream popular culture. Drawing on Bourdieu's (1990:56) theory of `habitus' as non-consciously performed practices'… internalised as second nature and so forgotten'; personal reflections as artist, choreographer and teacher; and a brief analysis of the male body in the television program, So You Think You Can Dance Australia (TEN Network, 2008), the author questions and considers the development of habitual ways of perceiving particular forms of male embodiment as aesthetic and attractive, and other forms as un-aesthetic. Further, the impact of the author's own experiences as actor! dancer and choreographer are considered in relation to his work as a director and choreographer of `the bodies of male and female students' in school productions. Through this paper, the author conjectures about the potential for the drama classroom to be a site in which embodied gender inequities may be challenged and deconstructed. Jack Migdalek [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The underachievement of boys has been a focus of intense concern in Australia for over 15 years. Historical analyses suggest that male students' poor performance has traditionally been attributed to factors external to boys themselves (methods, teachers, texts), deflecting attention from the relationship between masculinity construction and successful engagement with school. This paper turns the focus back, addressing the ways in which gender itself was constructed within hearings held for the Australian Parliamentary Inquiry into Boys' Education. Discursive analysis demonstrates that witnesses to the Inquiry drew upon a series of gender binaries in representing male and female students, and accounting for their relative attainment. These binaries worked to associate masculinity with 'authentic' learning, such that the success of male students was naturalised even in the absence of achievement. Conversely, the association of femininity and 'inauthentic learning' worked to undermine female students' demonstrated success. The role of these binaries in the reproduction of a paradoxical relationship between gender and achievement is discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The suicide rate among young people in Australia has caused considerable concern and been the focus of research and intervention. Issues related to sexuality and gender can be the source of conflict for young people within their communities, and have been implicated in suicide attempts. This paper examines the cultural context of youth suicide, and asks how youth suicide may be related to emerging sexual identity, which all young people must negotiate through the customs, discourse and taboos of their society. In particular, it focuses on the situation of young heterosexual women. The findings are based on interviews with 41 young people, parents and youth service providers regarding youth suicide. Interviews were semi‐structured and open‐ended, and conducted in a suburban community. They included the use of scenarios or vignettes. Finding, suggest that traditional constructions of gender remain widespread, and that these are often disadvantageous to both young women and young men. Parents may be unaware that they have little control over, or even knowledge about, their teenagers' behaviour. Young people are more inclined to confide in their friends, who may not be equipped to deal with crises. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]