Bias against Boys

A 17 year old boy in Massachussetts has charged school bias against boys in a suit filed with the US Dept. of Education’s Office of Civil Rights:

Among Anglin's allegations: Girls face fewer restrictions from teachers, like being able to wander the hallways without passes, and girls are rewarded for abiding by the rules, while boys' more rebellious ways are punished.

Grading on homework, which sometimes includes points for decorating a notebook, also favor girls, according to Anglin's complaint, filed last month with the US Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights.

''The system is designed to the disadvantage of males," Anglin said. ''From the elementary level, they establish a philosophy that if you sit down, follow orders, and listen to what they say, you'll do well and get good grades. Men naturally rebel against this."

I attribute this to the feminization of American schools. Women have always outnumbered men as teachers, but add to that the general dumbing down of American education (art projects rather than written work, process over substance) and overlay that with feminist hostility to men, and now boys, and you’ve got a big problem: bored and tuned out boys. (See my earlier post: Lockdown Learning)

The ed schools have pushed for years to encourage girls to do math and science, who research shows are hard-wired to perform better in reading, and have ignored boys, who are hard-wired for math but not reading:

Research has found that boys nationwide are increasingly falling behind girls, especially in reading and writing, and that they are more likely to be suspended, according to a 2005 report by the Educational Equity Center of the Academy for Educational Development, an international nonprofit group with headquarters in Washington, D.C.

When I read “The War Against Boys” a few years ago, it confirmed my observations of several years.

The high school senior also has a point on the recent movement to require community service for graduation, though I don't know that it discriminates against boys.

America was built on volunteerism. By mandating it, school officials have turned community service into community servitude.

This underscores the need for SCHOOL CHOICE. If the public schools aren't working for your children, and you can't afford private schools, you're stuck.