Credit: Keith Negley
Readers discuss if and how schools should address the differences in how boys and girls learn.
To the Editor:
Women outperform and outnumber men in postsecondary education, in part because the K-12 system does not provide boys with the same educational experience. It is geared for girls. Our academic system must bolster the experience for girls, but not at the expense of boys.
As we encourage girls to consider STEM (science, technology, engineering and math), we must work equally hard to encourage boys to consider literature, journalism and communications. Boys are often pushed toward math and science, and receive inadequate social support. We need to recognize boys’ differences, and their social and developmental needs.
Gender inequality in postsecondary education is partly the product of a K-12 educational system that presses academic and social skills at an age when girls are typically more socially and physiologically ready than boys.
A modern educational system must do these things:
■ Decrease suspension rates for boys.
■ Use educational modes that reach boys.
■ Allow boys more physical activity.
■ Facilitate introspection and a sense of self-worth.
■ Provide more reading, writing and communication opportunities.
■ Develop single-sex schools.
■ Start boys at different ages, providing more free preschool education that prepares boys for the classroom.
When K-12 systems and our culture defer to the boys-will-be-boys notion, we facilitate and accept the willful blindness to a disturbing trend: Women outnumber men by more than 2.8 million in postsecondary education. The gender ratios have essentially flipped from the mid-1970s to today, with boys falling behind in postsecondary success. Disciplinary procedures, physiological differences and teaching practices create greater challenges for boys.
Our K-12 systems must recognize gender differences so all children develop a love of learning. Educators must advance gender equality for girls and boys.
SEAN KULLMAN
Pleasanton, Calif.
The writer has taught at the university and secondary school levels and is the father of two boys.
Readers React
I think most of us, teachers included, would agree that boys and girls often approach learning differently. Girls are more advanced in language arts and fine motor skills at earlier ages, while boys perceive spatial relationships more vividly, function longer on the literal level, and have more testosterone and, thus, a greater need to deal with pent-up physical energy. Good teachers custom-fit their teaching to meet the unique learning needs of all their students — both boys and girls — while setting high expectations.
However, women who are the product of single-sex education are significantly more likely to study math and science, and in all-boys schools, young men tend to be less self-conscious about studying music, art or acting, and they are more open to sharing their feelings. A full and open discussion of the benefits of single-sex education should not be left out of a dialogue to help our boys and our girls on their way to postsecondary academic success.
JOSEPH T. COX
Executive Director, International Boys School Coalition
Bokeelia, Fla.
Mr. Kullman makes some very important points about how schools must be become more aware about how boys are disengaging from learning. Our position as early childhood educators is that the problems start very early and must be addressed beginning in pre-K. The focus must be on the development of positive social-emotional skills and learning about how to self-regulate one’s behavior. Without these essential skills, boys are not ready for academic learning. And pushing academics into early childhood is not the answer. All young children learn best through active play, and for boys, the opportunity to do so is critical to their engagement in learning.
There are many more strategies for making schools work better for boys. Providing reading material that speaks to their interests, focusing on their strengths instead of their weaknesses, and respecting and supporting their need for physical activity are just a few.
We part with Mr. Kullman about single-sex schools. There is ample research that shows it is not an effective solution. We live in a coed world and school should reflect that reality. Boys and girls learn from each other. There are many things that we as parents and teachers can do to make school a more successful experience for boys. For starters, pay attention to the problem.
BARBARA SPRUNG
MERLE FROSCHL
NANCY GROPPER
New York
Ms. Sprung and Ms. Froschl are co-directors of educational equity at FHI 360, a human development organization. Dr. Gropper is associate dean of academic affairs at Bank Street College of Education. They are the co-authors of “Supporting Boys’ Learning: Strategies for Teacher Practice, Pre-K-Grade 3.”
Mr. Kullman’s letter about gender inequality is well intended, but mostly off the mark. The inequality that he refers to is based on always changing social expectations rather than on the more permanent sex-related differences dictated by biology. And my more than 40 years in education has inclined me to accept the wisdom of the saying: “We raise our daughters, but we love our sons.”
Forget about the fuzzy notion that schools need to generate a love of learning for all students, regardless of gender. Instead, schools, parents and policy makers need to raise the bar of expectations, especially for boys. For example, the minimum grade point averages required for participation in sports, activities highly valued by boys in today’s society, are ridiculously low. Raise them!
It’s not that boys can’t meet the educational challenges as well as girls. History and the experience of male students in other countries and cultures have shown that they can. If you want gender equality, “raise” the boys as well as the girls.
GEORGE PETERNEL
Arlington Heights, Ill.