Young males in the public schoolsIN TRYING to explain the predominance of girls among the high school valedictorians in Boston this year ("24 out of 30) the article "Lopsided at the top" (City & Region, June 6) advances the usual stereotypes of boys as unmotivated, unfocused, lazy, and immature.
For a more respectful explanation, consider how society in general and schools in particular force young males into emotional and intellectual straitjackets, essentially programming them for stunted academic growth. The research done by William Pollack, Dan Kindlon, Michael Thompson, and Eli Newberger, among others, over the past eight years is worth examining. Boys are twice as likely as girls to be designated as "learning disabled" in schools across the country. In fact, boys constitute up to 67 percent of so-called "special ed" classes in high school. Does this mean that girls are smarter than boys, or does it perhaps suggest that something is wrong with the way in which schools evaluate and label young learners, especially young male learners? Similarly, if, as some studies show, 71 percent of all school suspensions are boys, should we turn to the old testosterone myths for explanation, or should we confront the subtle and obvious ways in which our culture discourages the full range of emotional development in young men? Clearly, this subject is more complex than the article would suggest. The gender of Boston public school valedictorians over the past five years is just a piece of the puzzle.
GEORGE VIGLIROLO © Copyright 2004 Globe Newspaper Company.
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