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Social forces affect education
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Effects of peer pressure on adolescents
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Emotional and behavioral differences between boys and girls have often been linked as a result of attributed responses from neuro-biological dissimilarities. Essentially, behavioral variances between males and females result from biological differences that remain unaddressed in a classroom setting. Biologically, boys have less serotonin and less oxytocin than girls – the chemicals that are primarily responsible for human bonding. This makes it more likely for boys to be more physically impulsive than girls. Girls in the classroom are naturally able to sit still and pay attention while their male counterparts – generally – fidget, drift off, and are restless. Boys are expected to keep their concerns to themselves in the classroom and yet boys are also expected to act in the ways girls do by sitting still and writing neatly. The emotional incoherence between boys and school has led to a repetitive misunderstanding of boys that leads them to a “self-defeating” performance in the classroom.
The educational gender gap has similarly been widened as a result of an emerging social environment that is increasingly unfavorable to boys. Chiefly, this is brought about through social norms and society’s perceptions of boys that have been tied to a false sense of masculinity. Society encourages girls to be “thin, pretty caregivers,” while boys are encouraged to be “strong, brave, silent, and macho.” These social perceptions are unknowingly reinforced by what studies have referred to as the ‘“Boy Code’” or “unwritten list of societal beliefs about how boys should act.” For example, the ‘Boy Code’ obliges boys to suppress their feelings, tells them not to cry, and to be physically aggressive and competitive. These constraining ...
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McDaniel, Anne E. “Gender And Education.” Encyclopedia of the Life Course and Human Development. Edited by Deborah Carr. Vol. 1, Childhood and Adolescence. Detroit: Macmillan Reference USA, 2009. 195-199. Accessed February 24, 2014. Gale Virtual Reference Library.
US Department of Education. Office For Civil Rights. Gender Equity in Education: A Data Snapshot. ERIC (June 2012): 1-4. Accessed February 24, 2014. http://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED533168.
Watson, Anne, and Michael Kehler. “Beyond the ‘Boy Problem’: Raising Questions, Growing Concerns and Literacy Reconsidered.” New England Reading Association Journal 48, no. 1 (2012): 43-55. Accessed February 14, 2014. http://eds.b.ebscohost.com/eds/detail?vid=5&sid=6a2a6fbf-b974-4bd5-8c4d-f367baef1a8c%40sessionmgr198&hid=116&bdata=#db=eft&AN=81281408.
Through the article, "How the School Shortchange Boys," by Gerry Garibaldi implies that the school setting has experienced a transformation towards feminization. In the past, the child faced numerous conditions that vindicated her trouble in a male dominated society. However, after the deceitful discharge processes, the woman was finally free and all institutions welcomed her input seeking to create a fair society. According to Garibaldi (2006), the modern school setting deprives the boy child freedom to interact and relate in a natural environment (Garibaldi 54). Girls are kind, complacent, understanding and conform to salient regulations without emphasis. With these elements, girls comply with school regulations delivering assignments on time. The boy child is inquisitive, rational and desires logical explanations explaining the reason behind every instruction. The modern school setting does shortchange boys as it creates an unequal platform where teachers favor girls and victimize boys because of their inherent traits.
The story of Inside the World of Boys by William Pollack brings the attention to us that the boys often suffer from low-self esteem, in large part due to “the boy code”, the unspoken rules that compel them to feel they need to hide their emotions and keep them from exposure. In effect, “the boy code” causes the problem of gender gap between boys and girls in academic performances. I choose this essay because I am concerned with how “the boy code” raises the gender gap between boys and girls in their academic performances and how our societies often underestimate all emotional needs of boys. This story is not only a story but also is a research paper of Pollack which is supported by his research results and statistics. The background story of Adam and his personal conversation with his mother make this story so fascinating and touching. It brings a social message to parents, school, and societies.
Gerry Garibaldi, a high school teacher and Michael Kimmel, a professor of sociology both explain how the consequences of the feminism movement are harming boys in school and later in life. Kimmel and Garibaldi present their views on the gender education problems in their articles “How The Schools Shortchange Boys” and “A War Against Boys”. Both make passionate arguments and prove that boys are at a disadvantage in modern feminized classrooms. Kimmel’s arguments about the problems boys face in the American educational system are more convincing than Garibaldi’s, because his style of argumentation is more objective, supported by more statistics, and provides unbiased restatement of opposing views.
Risman (1988:14) notes that “early childhood socialization is an influential determinant of later behavior, and research has focused on how societies create feminine women and masculine men.” Rather than focusing on gender as natural and fixed, Risman (1998) suggests instead that gender can be viewed at three levels: individual, interactional, and institutional. Instead of viewing the differences between men and women outlined in “If I Were A Boy” as natural and fixed, sociologists would instead look to socialization and societal norms to explain why men and women appear dissimilar. Additionally, many sociologists view gender as being continuously created; Risman (1988:10) notes “the pervasive differences between male[s] and female[s]…are continuously created by the gendered structures in which we all live.” Sociologists, who would instead view these perceived differences as a product of our society, would heavily dispute the gender essentialist perspective taken in “If I Were A Boy”.
Wood, J. T. (2011). Gendered lives: Communication, gender, and culture. (9th ed ed., pp. 1-227). Boston,MA: Wadsworth Cengage Learning.
Do humans let their gender define their capability to learn? In the “The Gender Gap at School,” David Brooks talks about how “Male reading rates are falling three times as fast as among young women’s” (Brooks 391), because teachers are not providing equal reading interest in both genders. However, gender does not play a role in males capability to succeed in their education for reading. “The problem with gender is that it prescribes how we should be, rather than recognizing how we are” (Adichie).
Sadker, Myra, David Sadker, and Susan Klein. "The Issue of Gender in Elementary and Secondary Education." Review of Research in Education 17 (1991): 269. JSTOR. Web. 14 Mar. 2012.
In the Washington post the essay “Why Schools Are Failing Our Boys” relates to the study of the “boy problem” Fink’s concern is that boys have a harder time in school causing them to drop out or not to go on to college. I agree with Fink’s concern because of the mistreatment of genders and the pressure put on students as a whole. Based on class readings it has been illustrated that throughout history boys felt as though school made them feel less masculine. From what I have personally seen in school, boys are constantly being told to “man up”. I feel as though boys are expected to act a certain way and all students are expected to conform to a certain type of learning. Fink’s truthful experience through her son is an accurate model on how
Brooks argues that male and female brains work and experience things differently. He suggests that this theory is also the reason as to why young girls are surpassing their male counterparts in school settings. He incorrectly assumes that by separating males and females, males will be allowed to break free from gender stereotypes. Brooks strengthens his argument with results of brain research on sex differences. But, Brook’s argument is unpersuasive. He categorizes all young males, and suggest that single sex-schools are the best solution for them. He wants to apply a black-and-white solution to something that is just not that simple. While Brooks uses comparisons and surveys to convince the reader, his argument simply does
Wood, J. T. (2013). Gendered lives: communication, gender & and culture (10th ed.). Boston, MA: Wadsworth Cengage Learning.
Sending a child to a gender based school, is a very big decision to make. The decision is so big, that looking at what research has to say about the topic could alter one’s decision to send their child to a gender based school. “Educators must apply different approaches in teaching make, and female students” (Gurian). This is said by Gurian, because he also believes that boys and girls learn differently. “Social pressures can be gentler and your child can learn at his own pace” (Kennedy).
‘Boys will be boys’, a phrase coined to exonerate the entire male sex of loathsome acts past, present, and potential. But what about the female sex, if females act out of turn they are deemed ‘unladylike’ or something of the sort and scolded. This double standard for men and women dates back as far as the first civilizations and exists only because it is allowed to, because it is taught. Gender roles and cues are instilled in children far prior to any knowledge of the anatomy of the sexes. This knowledge is learned socially, culturally, it is not innate. And these characteristics can vary when the environment one is raised in differs from the norm. Child rearing and cultural factors play a large role in how individuals act and see themselves.
As a child develops, their surroundings have a major influence on the rest of their lives; if boys are taught to “man up” or never to do something “like a girl”, they will become men in constant fear of not being masculine enough. Through elementary and middle school ages, boys are taught that a tough, violent, strong, in-control man is the ideal in society and they beat themselves up until they reach that ideal. They have to fit into the “man box” (Men and Masculinity) and if they do not fulfill the expectations, they could experience physical and verbal bullying from others. Not only are friends and family influencing the definition of masculine, but marketing and toys stretch the difference between a “boy’s toy” and a “girl’s toy”. Even as early as 2 years old, children learn to play and prefer their gender’s toys over the other gender’s (Putnam). When children grow up hearing gender stereotypes from everyone around them, especially those they love and trust like their parents, they begin to submit themselves and experience a loss of individuality trying to become society’s ideal. If everyone is becoming the same ideal, no one has a sense of self or uniqueness anymore and the culture suffers from
Women, Girls, Boys and Men today face a variety of different issues in contemporary american society. Many of the problems that they face are regarding gender and cultural issues. Today we say that both genders are equal but in reality they are really not. We have both girls and both falling behind in school because of these cultural issues. According to David Brooks article titled “Honor Code,” the reason why boys especially, are falling behind in education is because of the way the education system is set-up. He states that schools today proclaim that they are diverse, but in fact they have become “homogeneous,” they only cater to students who are “nurturing, collaborative, disciplined, neat, studious, industrious and ambitious.” He says that those who do not fit in with those categories are left behind, they become disconnected and eventually withdraw completely from their education. It has become a huge problem in the U.S, where colleges are lowering their admission standards just so they can admit more men. Mr. Brooks says the problems with boys is that they are naturally aggres...
The reality that boys are failing, especially through elementary, middle, and high school, strikes many as news. Richard Whitmire, author of Why Boys Fail, cites teachers’ experience that have noticed distinct differences between boys and girls. He presents multiple witnesses of boys’ and girls’ education, one of which is Kenneth Dragseth, the superintendent of schools in Edina, MN. In 2001, He noticed the disparity between the participation of girls and boys in education. He first noted the recipients of almost all academic achievements and scholarship awards were girls. Dragseth initiated specific research into the disparity between boys and girls, and discovered even more details. In a study, he further discovered that girls earned honors awards far more than men, while boys earned suspensions far more than ...