Why are boys falling so far behind in high school and colleges have become overwhelmingly female?

Question

Is it "uncool" for boys to study and do well? Too much video game playing? Too much Internet porn? Whatever the cause, the result is bad for young men -- women in their 20s are outearning them in several major cities. How do we justify this, given that males have every privilege? (And women, seriously -- keep up the good work. Feminism is working.)

No, sir, ByTheWay -- women outearn men in their 20s by wide margins in NY City, Dallas and several other major cities. The New York Times recently reported that. Isn't it time men started asking what they hell is holding them back? NOTE that women voluntarily take themselves out the workplace to have families so men catch up, but all things being equal, you young guys are getting your balls kicked.

hypocrisynorther -- the feminism thing made you laugh? Look at the stats, computer science boy. They've come a long way, baby. 30 years ago the colleges were male bastions; now, all the studies where writing is emphasized are female oriented. And, man, they are outearning you all. How do you account for that, given all your male privilege? You guys are playing too much!!

ObjectOfItsIre -- you want to pretend this isn't happening -- the young urban women have passed the young guys. First time in history. It's a big deal, feminists won't tout it much because they don't want people to say we don't need feminism any longer. So you can say all you want about boys are doing fine and all that, but the young women are beating the young men for the first time. Wow!

egn18s -- makes sense. Makes a lot of sense.

And Rio -- how can you say boys aren't doing worse? Don't the feminists say they boys have this male privilege and all? If that's true, how can the women possibly beat them like they are doing? Doesn't make sense, unless the boys are doing something wrong.

Answer 1

I've read conflicting theories.

First that boys are falling behind and that of course is due to the fact that female teachers don't properly address the learning styles of boys. That is the fault of female teachers even though most men are not exactly trying to involve themselves in the education of young boys.

I've also read that boys are not falling behind, that they are remaining relatively the same, but that girls outpaced them once the education of girls began to be seen as valuable and worthwhile. Girls only began to seriously compete educationally during an era when one could no longer be guaranteed a sustainable wage by way of high school graduation. Girls started competing with a college bound mindset, because they knew there was little blue collar opportunity for them, yet a lot of boys didn't get that message and still believed they could live the way their father did, as a bricklayer or a carpenter.

Then of course, there are the middle class boys who are being dumbed down and turned into drugged up little zombies, because their restlessness and their level of physical activity isn't convenient for parents who work long hours and teachers who can't manage overcrowded classrooms. The boys shut down and tune out because people treat them as nuisances.

Edit: I think the truth lies somewhere in the middle.

Edit: Object of it's Ire said something similar to my answer and as usual she's right. Score!

Answer 2

That's because boys know that they don't need to get a college degree to get a relatively high paying job so they don't value their education as much. Like it or not, there are still quite of few jobs out there that pay well and don't require a college degree. These include miner, truck driver, construction worker, carpenter, plumber, and electrician. For some of these careers, they do have to get training but that's not the same thing as getting a college degree.

College is not for everybody anyway. It is a place for higher learning. Too many people are attending for all the wrong reasons. They expect to get a great paying job when they graduate and that's not the real purpose of going to college. If job training is all you want, consider going to a technical, trade, vocational, or business school instead. That way, you get to learn exactly what you want and you don't have to take courses you consider to be stupid and useless.

Answer 3

I read something about this a while ago, maybe last year. The article suggested that, in the past, teaching styles were more geared towards male's learning styles (males and females supposedly learn in different ways). So it used to be that boys did better in general. But over time, the teaching styles have changed to accommodate girl's learning styles and it's gotten to the point where they have come so far as to be the opposite of before, where now boy's learning styles are not being matched by the teaching styles. So now girls are doing better in general.

Also, I think it's true what others are saying: That boys are being increasingly subjected to influences that make it seem uncool to do good in school. Rather than being educated in school, it is more cool to be educated "out on the streets!" Meanwhile girls are being influenced more and more to do good in school so they can get a good job to support their future children, because most mothers are working mothers these days.

Answer 4

I do think it's a problem with current attitudes toward education. I absolutely believe that among the current youth, boys and young men are less motivated academically, at least among lower class groups. (If you look at the stats as broken down by class, you'd see that upper class males ARE, indeed, doing "just fine," as they always have), but there IS a "crisis" among lower class boys. They are dropping out (and falling behind) in droves. Juxtapose this with the fact that girls from lower income families are making the grade and going on to college more and more each year, and you have a gender disparity in education. It IS a problem for lower class young men, and it is one that must be addressed, for what it is, a problem of cultural attitudes toward education.

Answer 5

I read something in Time magazine about this. It said that more boys are getting into trouble and trying to look tough and cool with hanging around scum instead of doing their schoolwork and thinking of college. The females are very interested in preparing for careers and their futures so that they can be independent and create the lives they want.

Answer 6

There is no evidence that boys are falling behind: the myth of the "Boy Crisis" has been dispelled.

See:
The Myth of 'The Boy Crisis'
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/04/07/AR2006040702025.html

and
Study Casts Doubt On the 'Boy Crisis'
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/06/25/AR2006062501047.html

for starters. Don't you just HATE IT when other people can support their argument and YOU CAN'T?
It must be EMBARASSING.

The Washington Post is a credible, reliable source of information.

At the undergraduate level you see more female students because many male students prefer to learn well-paying blue collar trades like electrician, plumber, etc. There are no equivalents in the Pink Collar Ghetto; a hairdresser's earnings are low.

As you move up the food chain you will see more males in evidence. At the top of the pinnacle, especially in fields like the natural sciences and engineering (the best paid areas) you will find few females.

EDIT TO ROBOTMAN aka jonmcn
As usual, you are wrong. About 15% of working biologists are female. I can make it up just as well as you. At least I make the effort to answer the poster's question and I provide links to sources - by contrast you seem to have convinced yourself that this is your personal space for for spewing gibberish and insulting everyone and everything- including the disciplines involved. Most of the time you couldn't even be bothered to answer the poster's question - this instance is yet another example.

Go back to the kennel - Spot needs a walk.

Answer 7

Women in their 20s are outearning them in several major cities in G & WS studies I presume.

Answer 8

Sounds cute and all, but I am going into the computer science field pretty much all dominated by males. I do play video games, yes. I am making for the most part straight A's and I am in my second year of college. So there are acceptions. And about the feminism thing....made me lol.

"We R s0 muCh beTTer than teh Guyz mirite lolz. GurL pOweR."

Answer 9

Because the entire education system has been feminized, so boys are pushed out of college/university places. Nevertheless, this current trend, which will continue to increase, will only harm society on the whole eventually.

Answer 10

I agree with you that boys had been influenced by so much in today's media. but it also applies to girls. We have as much pressures and temptations as boys. People dont recognize it because most girls are secretive. They hid their feelings and desires away.