This article looks at the transition to higher education made by a group of male undergraduates. The data were collected though one‐to‐one interviews with 24 students, who were asked questions designed to elicit data about their positioning in relation to hegemonic masculinities. The evidence presented here supports the view that gender operates as a salient and accessible means of identifying an in‐group of peers and that ‘laddish’ practices are enacted as a function of the initial stages of peer group formation. However, such practices are described by many respondents as a ‘front’ or performance. In distancing themselves from such practices, these students did not succeed in articulating ‘alternative masculinities’, but many articulated a strong underlying value for an authentic self, providing an important insight into the experiencing of identity.

This article reports findings from a small-scale focus-group study funded by the British Academy. Drawing on Herbert Marsh and Richard Shavelson's notion of ''Academic Self-Concept'' and David Barton and Mary Hamilton's view of literacy as context-specific social practices, the authors examine what young British Harry Potter enthusiasts perceive as the influence of the novels on their subsequent reading behaviour and academic development. Specifically, they consider whether these children feel that Harry Potter has helped improve their literacy skills and whether they think the books have changed their attitudes to reading.

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