This essay has been written by Name of Student of Class of Student of Name of College
Gerry Garibaldi is a writer and teacher from San Francisco, the United States, who has worked for movies as a reader, a freelance writer and eventually a teacher. Article “How the Schools Shortchange Boys”, written by Gerry Garibaldi deals with the discrimination suffered by the boys in educational institutions. Garibaldi talks about the feminization of the schools and rejects the feminist complaints of losing their voice as no more valid. He emphasizes that the classroom are more girl-friendly and more detrimental to the boys now. Due to the unfriendly environment of classrooms, boys have gradually disengaged themselves from studies. The ratio of boys obtaining high school diploma remained 65 percent in 2003, whereas 72 percent of girls were successful. Girls get the higher grades and graduate at higher rate as compared to the boys. Also, girls have outnumber the boys in most of university campuses across the United States. The situation is due to the boys’ aggressive and rationalist nature that is defined by the educators as the behavioral disorder. It is a behavioral disorder among the boys that gets them in trouble in the feminized schools, as the boys do not want to be the girls. In the writer’s words, “Boys will pin you with a wall like a moth. They want a rational explanation of everything. If unconvinced by your reasons, or if you do not bother to offer any, they slouch contemptuously in their chair, beat their pencils or watch the squirrels outside the window.”
Michael Kimmel is a professor of sociology at the State University of New York, and is one of the best researchers on gender studies. Michael Kimmel is his article “A War against Boys” starts off with the story of a boy Doug Anglin, who has sued his school district for sex discrimination. His lawsuit claims that the school routinely discriminates against boys. He narrates that “From the elementary level, they establish a philosophy that if you sit down, follow orders, and listen to what they say, you will do well and get good grades. Men naturally rebel against this.” Michael Kimmel highlights in his article that such comments from a mediocre high school students may not weigh high but do indicate the trend being followed in educational institutions. The issue has become a staple on talk radio, the cover story in the Newsweek, and subject of many columns in the newspapers and magazines. The writer agrees with the fact that boys do not fare well in schools. Starting from the elementary school to a higher school, boys have lower grades, lower class ranks and fewer honors than the girls. Michael Kimmel highlights that women now constitute the majority on college campuses as well, and in eight years’ time, 58 percent of the bachelor’s degrees holders will be women. If the same trend continues, by 2068, only women will graduate from the universities. It indicates a dangerous trend for the males in the society. The writer highlights three issues for the subject decline in the performance of boys. These include; the declining numbers, the declining achievement and increasingly problematic behavior.
Both the articles highlight the failing on the part of boys and successes achieved by the girls. Both the articles indicate the feminist trends are prevailing in schools, colleges and universities. Both the writers provide the numbers of evidences and sources to support their viewpoint. Both the writers have included sources and arguments from both sides; however, both being the male writer, women may have objections to the contents of the articles. Michael Kimmel seems to be a better writer out of the two as his arguments appear more convincing.
It becomes the society’s responsibility to ensure an unbiased and fair playground for both the genders. “Boys will be the boys” does highlight the changed mindset and gene factor, and the boys deserve a fair allowance in their behavior of their being boys. Boys do not fail themselves; rather it is the motivation by the school teachers that make the difference. The teachers try to fix the discipline of the boys instead paying attention to their studies. In the order of priority, the reasons for the boys’ poor performance are the teachers’ attitude, societal response, educational system and the boys themselves.
References
Gerry Garibaldi. (2006). How the Schools Shortchange Boys.
Michael Kimmel. (2006). A War against Boys.
