A study by the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority into standards of writing in secondary schools in England has found that boys often use more "sophisticated" vocabulary and are more accurate at spelling.

But when it comes to GCSE exams, boys on average perform much less well than girls, with researchers concluding that it is the style of boys' writing that gives them lower exam marks.

Boys' creative writing might have fewer spelling mistakes and better punctuation, but it is also likely to be shorter, have more action than narrative and have less "elaboration" and dialogue, all of which gives boys less scope for gaining marks.

The report, Improving Writing in Secondary Schools, analysed exam papers from last year's GCSE candidates and found that among boys and girls achieving the same grade at English, boys' writing on average had better sentence structure and more accurate grammar.

The research also identified the types of strengths and weaknesses shown by candidates at different exam grades - such as A grade pupils making only one spelling mistake in a hundred words, compared to three in a hundred for C grade pupils.