Who Run The Schools? Girls.

Most people will undoubtedly admit that females have been the disadvantaged gender throughout time. It was not until 1920 that the 19th amendment passed that gave women suffrage; they have constantly been viewed as homebodies only good for cooking, cleaning and childbirth. Well guys I have some news for you, the year is 2012 and girls have slowly climbed their way to the top of the totem pole. Girls are now showing that they are more academically advanced than their male counterparts. According to this Educational Article there are two main reasons why females are excelling in school: one is because girls are more determined to do better at school and further their education whereas male counterparts tend to flat line with their education. Another reason is that males are lagging representation in college graduation rates.

So what is the real reason behind this decrease in male academic success? Some say that classrooms and reading material are geared towards female success. Also the slow decline of recess and scarcity of male teachers could be a contributing factor. According to USA Today 57% of college students are women and 43% are men.  Kimberly Tsaousis, a college-prep adviser, said "Girls are way more likely to just pay attention" during advising sessions, she says. "It's almost less cool" for boys to show interest in college.

According to Richard Whitmire, early education is now emphasizing literacy skills which are proving to put male students at a disadvantage from the get-go. Being a Secondary Education-English major I can definitely concur that females pick up the required reading skills earlier than males.

So what can we do to eliminate this gender gap?

1)Make reading male friends so that guys want to read. Provide educational readings that guys will find appealing. Say a kid enjoys space, instead of reading Captain Underpants you can give them something interesting and education such as a book on the solar system. Boys normally do not want to write about their goals and aspirations instead make them grow and learn from something that they enjoy to write about it.

2) Research shows that young students benefit academically, as well as physically and behaviorally, when they get breaks to blow off steam on the playground. Guys will do better in school if they get time to blow off steam and get active outside of schoolwork. Recess helps kids get involved and boys

3)Boys are also proven to do better if they get a private tutor. Boys are at a disadvantage with reading and  grammar and some one-on-one time would help boys get the extra help that they need.

This gender gap makes teaching a difficult task to create equality in the classroom, but it can be done. As a Secondary Education-English major I hope to make grammar an equal opportunity class and no gender advantages. Although I enjoy that girls are making big steps in the education world, equality is what we should strive for among all of our students. 

 

^ these are some books that delve more into the gender issue in the classroom.