Reply #10: Other studies have shown how girls are shortchanged [View All]

[Warpy]

in classes from kindergarten through high school by being expected to be silent and decorative while the boys are encouraged to shout out answers and take credit for ideas that come from elsewhere, usually the girls. The difference in teacher time afforded each sex was disheartening, girls largely being left to fend for themselves.

I agree that the problem with boys may be a cultural one, but I see it as THEIR culture, something we have little control over. Think about it, what behaviors do boys reward? What do they punish in terms of teasing and bullying? Academic success is generally in the latter group. I have NEVER heard one boy praise another for his mental abilities unless there was a contest of some sort being won.

As long as academically gifted boys are being condemned as nerds and as long as sports are the main avenue to gain male approval, we are not going to see any solution to the "boy crisis."

And you're right, punishing girls is not the answer, although it is the traditional way of dealing with the phenomenon. I expect it will be done again.