Hoff Sommers, C. (2000). The war against boys. NY: Simon & Shuster Paperbacks.
The war against boys
What ever happened to 'let boys be boys'? The following anecdote from Sommers book highlights the situation in schools today. "A sixth-grade boy, whose mother asks to be identified as Dan, squirms as his teacher tells his parents he's not trying hard enough in school. He looks away as the teacher directs his parents to a table of projects the class has done on Ancient Greek civilisation. Some projects are meticulous works of art, with edges burned to resemble old parchment. Dan's title page is plain and unillustrated, and he's left an 'e' out of 'Greek'. "You'll never get anywhere if you don't try," says Dan's father as they leave the classroom. "I don't understand," says Dan's mother, whose two older daughters got straight A's in school without her intervention."
The gender gap
It became apparent in the 1990's girls were falling behind in math and science and this revelation gave momentum to the movement to focus more on girls' education. This movement in education overlooked the obvious fact that boys, too, were failing in other areas such as reading, writing, and school engagement. The push in girls' education was so successful that they now outnumber boys entering higher education institutions. "Today women in the United States earn 57% of bachelor's degrees, 60 percent of master's degrees, and 52 percent of PhDs. One can only assume that the gender gap is real and it has a negative effect on boys' education and life opportunities." What alerted parents and others was the observation that girls were collecting the majority of honours and awards in high school.
Pay gap
There has been much said about the gender pay gap in the news media. Almost daily there are calls for equality in the work place. However, in most Western countries it is illegal for employers to pay women less than a man doing the same job. There has been a concerted effort in OECD countries to make sure that women have equal opportunity and equal pay. It is disingenuous and discriminatory in our modern society to have it any other way. If this was not so it would be the most logical thing for an employer to hire women rather than men because it would be cheaper and more efficient. However, there does not seem to be any evidence that this is happening. What is certain is that in Australia and in other western countries employers will face heavy fines if they do otherwise. What then is the problem with the so called gender wage gap?
Gap driven by choice, lifestyle, and hours worked
The gender pay disparity is driven more by choice of occupation and lifestyle, hours worked, and length of employment in the work force. Sommers suggests that female doctors are more likely to be paediatricians than higher paid cardiologists. In General, women dominate lower paid occupations such as child care, teaching, nursing and other jobs within the service industries. This is because women, on the whole make life style choices by electing professions that tend to be nurturing and caring roles. Many women, who choose to have a family, will prefer to stay at home longer to nurture their family. Jobs like teaching, for example, enable women to be more available outside of school time including school holidays. Furthermore, women tend to look for jobs that allow them to be more agreeable while men tend to be more competitive and seek more aggressive and competitive occupations. Some would posit that gender stereotyping actually coerces women into lower paid positions.
Countries like Sweden have for a long time implemented affirmative action policies whereby they use quotas to try and redress the imbalance in some occupations. However, Affirmative action in Sweden has been very disappointing. Despite the fact that the Nordic countries have taken the lead in gender equality the results indicate that there are more women in the work force but fewer Swedish women reach top executive positions than more conservative countries like the United States of America.
Merit or equity
There are problems for men entering the workforce as well. As already alluded to above there are more female college and university graduates available for employment. Some affirmative action policies will mean that women will be selected as more suitable because the employer may need to fulfil a certain equity quota. Logcally, one would expect that the most qualified applicant for the job should be selected, but this is often not the case. All people should have equal opportunity to pursue the career of their choice regardless of race, gender, or age. However, if applications for positions are judged according to equity of outcomes it creates an unfair advantage and leads to poorer quality applicants securing higher levels job. In contrast, contract selection according to merit is fair and will lead to better creativity and productivity.
Schools and boys
The worrying problem in schools is that male underachievement is feeding the growing college and university entrance gap. In the last twenty or so years there has been a concerted effort by teachers to lift the performance of girls but the same effort has not been applied to boys. There may be other reasons for this as well. In the past boys have tended to perform at each end of the achievement spectrum while girls were more likely to congregate in the centre. However, particularly in primary and preschool education there are few role models for boys as nearly all teachers in primary schools (elementary schools) tend to be female. Added to this is the fact that it is more common for boys to grow up without a father present at home, particularly in black American homes. Many other fathers are at home but are disengaged and do not provide what is needed. Boys are more likely to have a learning disability or ADHD. Boys all favour a different style of learning but since most teachers are women they will prefer a more feminine teaching style.
Staking the deck
What is more concerning is that it would seem that the deck is being stacked against giving boys 'a fair go' in education. Sommers asks the question, "What is the answer? More boy-friendly curricula? More male teachers? More single-sex classrooms? Special preschool classes to improve boys' social skills? Extra recess where boys are allowed to engage in their characteristic rough-and-tumble play? More engaging schools like Aviation High? ... these are all promising solutions-and all are strenuously opposed by the women's lobby." Furthermore, boys are generally noisy, rowdy, and hard to manage. They are often messy, disorganised, and will not sit still. Boys like action, risk, and competition. They also tend to do less well with group work and are not as good with language as girls. They tend to think that reading is a feminine activity. Since the 1970s there has been a decline in the amount of time given to recess and structured outdoor activities. It is unsurprising that obesity has become a problem for girls, but even more so for boys. Boys are give more suspensions for minor acts. What is more concerning is that there has been a deliberate push to make boys less masculine because male traits are seen as being less virtuous.
Second sex
Britain and Australia have raised concerns for the gender gap and a more equitable education of boys. For example, in 2002, the Australian House of Representatives Standing Committee on Education and Training published Boys: Getting It Right: Report n the Inquiry into the Education of Boys. The report called for a change away from just a focus solely on the needs of girls for gender equality and deterred calls for the transformation of boy's masculinity. There is much to be done in most Western countries otherwise boys will become the second sex. This is particularly concerning due to the likelihood that the economy will drift further toward a knowledge based society and will attract more women.
I would recommend this book as essential reading for those that are concerned with real equality of opportunity for all.
Other links of interest:
The war against boys: Prager U
Make men masculine again: Prager U
Tucker Carlson interview with Jordan Petersen: The lefts toxic masculinity label to blame for the crisis.
Why do girls outperform boys on reading tests throughout the world?: OUPblog
Asian American boys
Gender pay gap explained: Harvard
Gender pay gap: Guardian - 20-29 year old women earn more than men
Why Traditional Masculinity is Good for Academia: Areo
Masculinity and Poway Synagogue: Culture
Woman said man who stopped to help her when her car broke down assaulted her: Daily Wire
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