For years we have heard how girls have been left behind in terms of science and math. It has been said that boys far exceed the girls and that we must place a focus upon women in these careers. I agree with those statements. However, girls make up the difference in other areas and perhaps far exceed the boys.
Brain research shows that girls well out do boys in reading and writing. Girls are also generally higher achievers in our traditional classrooms.
Boys and girls learn differently. Boys have extra, sometimes uncontrollable, energy. Their attention spans are shorter.
It appears that perhaps indeed the traditional classroom setting is designed for girls. For centuries, classrooms have been designed around the thought that students should sit in their seats and listen to a teacher. This idea is much better suited for girls than boys.
The movement to get students out of their seats and participating in hands-on learning is on the rise. Hopefully boys will begin to fit in much better in the academic classroom setting.
In addition to falling behind in reading and writing and attention, it has been discovered that boys are more likely to be suspended or even expelled from school. Also the majority of special education students are boys. Boys are also more likely to be school dropouts.
Part of these findings may be due to the fact that the majority of teachers are women. Teachers are unaware of how to deal with the rambunctious behavior of boys and often rely on disciplinary techniques.
Some public school districts are offering single sex class instruction. In 1995, only three public schools offered classes such as these. Today 262 public schools have single sex classes.
With more research findings, I believe that the number of single gender classrooms across America will increase. However, I also hope that instruction and training dealing in gender learning differences for teachers will also increase.
I have both a boy and a girl. Neither are in school. However the differences in their behavior and mannerism is amazing.
Finding the Right School For Your Child