4 ms·

The point of the article was how compulsory education is failing boys specifically. What is your assessment of that as an educator?

MarcScott 12y ago
She is not talking about how compulsory education is failing boys, but about how it is failing her boy. She talks about 'Little House on the Prairie' as if she expects all boys to be provided lessons on splitting logs and herding cattle. This is not an education that would suit all boys, just hers. In my experience, boys are doing fine at school. They tend to underachieve in their early years, where they are less inclined to study in comparison to girls. As they progress through school and get to specialise, they tend to do better.
- squidfood 12y ago
  If there's a specific demographic whose needs are not met, then teaching methods for that demographic should be examined. We've gone through it for girls, gifted, the challenged, etc. Why shouldn't there be similar issues for boys? How many anecdotes do you want? My son? My friends' sons? The dramatic lack (and cutting back) of physical activity at schools is a systemic issue that impacts many.
  - pgeorgi 12y ago
    Too add an anecdote: I always thought (as a boy) that the 2 hours of compulsory and graded physical activity per week were 2 hours too many.
- stevenmays 12y ago
  She used her child as an anecdote for all boys. Do you think that the current childhood education strategy is what is resulting in 1/3 higher college success rate of women? What do you think would be necessary to get that ratio a more gender neutral 50/50?
  - MarcScott 12y ago
    Probably the same sort of strategies that would narrow the pay gap between males and females and make post-college salaries more gender neutral. Using your child as an anecdote makes it just that - an anecdote. I teach male students who are forced to engage in 2 hours of Physical Education every week, and have to endure failure after failure in the subject. As I said in my initial comment, if we want boys, or any group, to succeed we need to be tailoring our lessons to those students. Resources are finite however, and this is the real issue.
    - mreiland 12y ago
      post-college salaries are w/i 5% of each other when controlled for variables such as education, experience, and profession.
    - belorn 12y ago
      I doubt anyone would be willing to employ the same strategies. We would first need to blame female teachers for perpetrate a hostile culture, where male teachers can not go to work without feeling they must represent the male gender, or the assumption that they are pedophiles for taking a job in education. Next we would need to add a incentive scheme for male students only, maybe getting money for achieving higher grades. Female students might feel this to be unfair, but if they complain they should be told that they are against gender equality, and for added insult, that they are privileged and they can't comment on the issue since they are female. If that fails, a prominent male teachers could then declare that all schools are sexists, and then go to start a male only school where no female teachers or student are allowed to enter. A place where men can talk with other men, free from disruption of women. This can then be a keynoted talk on conferences as a success story for gender equality.

MarcScott 12y ago

She is not talking about how compulsory education is failing boys, but about how it is failing her boy. She talks about 'Little House on the Prairie' as if she expects all boys to be provided lessons on splitting logs and herding cattle. This is not an education that would suit all boys, just hers. In my experience, boys are doing fine at school. They tend to underachieve in their early years, where they are less inclined to study in comparison to girls. As they progress through school and get to specialise, they tend to do better.

squidfood 12y ago
If there's a specific demographic whose needs are not met, then teaching methods for that demographic should be examined. We've gone through it for girls, gifted, the challenged, etc. Why shouldn't there be similar issues for boys? How many anecdotes do you want? My son? My friends' sons? The dramatic lack (and cutting back) of physical activity at schools is a systemic issue that impacts many.
- pgeorgi 12y ago
  Too add an anecdote: I always thought (as a boy) that the 2 hours of compulsory and graded physical activity per week were 2 hours too many.
stevenmays 12y ago
She used her child as an anecdote for all boys. Do you think that the current childhood education strategy is what is resulting in 1/3 higher college success rate of women? What do you think would be necessary to get that ratio a more gender neutral 50/50?
- MarcScott 12y ago
  Probably the same sort of strategies that would narrow the pay gap between males and females and make post-college salaries more gender neutral. Using your child as an anecdote makes it just that - an anecdote. I teach male students who are forced to engage in 2 hours of Physical Education every week, and have to endure failure after failure in the subject. As I said in my initial comment, if we want boys, or any group, to succeed we need to be tailoring our lessons to those students. Resources are finite however, and this is the real issue.
  - mreiland 12y ago
    post-college salaries are w/i 5% of each other when controlled for variables such as education, experience, and profession.
  - belorn 12y ago
    I doubt anyone would be willing to employ the same strategies. We would first need to blame female teachers for perpetrate a hostile culture, where male teachers can not go to work without feeling they must represent the male gender, or the assumption that they are pedophiles for taking a job in education. Next we would need to add a incentive scheme for male students only, maybe getting money for achieving higher grades. Female students might feel this to be unfair, but if they complain they should be told that they are against gender equality, and for added insult, that they are privileged and they can't comment on the issue since they are female. If that fails, a prominent male teachers could then declare that all schools are sexists, and then go to start a male only school where no female teachers or student are allowed to enter. A place where men can talk with other men, free from disruption of women. This can then be a keynoted talk on conferences as a success story for gender equality.