A Quebec report and new federal health data are renewing concern that boys are falling behind in school and facing worsening mental health trends.
A new Quebec report is renewing debate over whether boys are being left behind in school, pointing to gaps in dropout rates, language proficiency and access to academic pathways that some experts say can begin as early as kindergarten.
The white paper, prepared by Quebec Solidaire MNA Gabriel Nadeau-Dubois and submitted to the Quebec government, says boys are “systemically disadvantaged” in the school system. CBC reported that the annual high school dropout rate cited in the report is 27.1 per cent for boys, compared with 19.9 per cent for girls.
The report also found boys trailing on a standardized secondary-school French proficiency test, with just over 60 per cent meeting the bar, compared with more than 70 per cent of girls. It said boys are less likely to get into prestigious high school academic programs and are more likely than girls to have learning disabilities or disorders, at 8.1 per cent compared with 5.5 per cent.
For some parents, the concern is not only about grades but about whether early classrooms are built for how many young boys learn and behave. Jessica Sabatini, a Montreal teacher and mother of four, told CBC she worried that her six-year-old son was experiencing kindergarten differently from her daughters, with long stretches of sitting and worksheets making the day harder for him.
“My biggest fear is he isn’t going to feel like he fits in or can be successful in that space,” Sabatini said. “And if he doesn’t feel like he can be successful, he will just give up.”
Catherine Haeck, a Montreal-based economist who studies early childhood education and development, told CBC the issue is broader than Quebec. She said boys can be seen falling behind girls as young as age five and argued that schools need to respond earlier to different learning needs.
The debate comes with important context. Experts cited by CBC said there can be reluctance to discuss a “boy crisis” because women continue to face structural inequality in the workforce. Statistics Canada data cited in the report showed women held 42.7 per cent of middle management roles and 30.8 per cent of senior management roles in 2021, and earned 88 cents for every dollar men earned in 2025.
Still, the school gaps are also being linked to longer-term consequences. Statistics Canada data for 2023-24 cited by CBC showed men made up 44.5 per cent of post-secondary campuses, compared with 55.5 per cent women. Health Canada data cited in the report showed boys are diagnosed with ADHD nearly twice as often as girls, at 10.8 per cent compared with 5.9 per cent.
New Health Canada data also showed the share of males aged 15 to 24 who rated their mental health as “very good” or “excellent” fell from 70 per cent in 2012 to 52 per cent in 2022. Haeck told CBC that supporting boys who are struggling should not mean pulling back support for girls: “The idea is not to change anything on the women's side. The idea is to put in place strategies that help boys succeed.”
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