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Wednesday, June 10, 2009

What About The Boys? Boys Face Serious Issues Which Are Being Ignored, Experts Argue

Professor Kleinfeld’s paper reviews the different viewpoints surrounding the debated existence of a so-called ‘boy crisis’. She then looks at gender differences in measures of educational achievement including literacy levels, college entrance tests, school grades, engagement in schools, dropout rates, as well as psychological issues affecting young people including mental health, suicide, depression and conduct disorders. Lastly, she shows how boys and girls compare in terms of premature death and injuries and rates of delinquency and arrests.

According to Judith Kleinfeld, boys get the raw deal. Compared with girls, American boys have lower rates of literacy, lower grades and engagement in school, higher drop-out from school, and dramatically higher rates of suicide, premature death, injuries, and arrests. Boys are also placed more often in special education. Girls on the other hand are more likely to have different problems including depression, suicidal thoughts and eating disorders.

The article invites one question in particular, what keeps boys and men interested in socially constructive behavior? What helps women know their own worth and feel empowered to take on their goals in life?

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