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Stop Penalizing Boys for Not Being Able to Sit Still at School

theatlantic.com

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Re: Stop Penalizing Boys for Not Being Able to Sit Still at School

#81
post #50

School is half education and half babysitting. The problem is that schools aren't aware of that, and they try to cram too much learning/work into a day at school. Kids just don't have the attention span. College isn't taught this way. Colleges realize that even young adults can't handle 40 hours a week of continual instruction, why do we do this kids can? I think the reason, is that we're always behind other countrie…

How come they don't seem to have this problem in China, India or Germany? It isn't that kids can't handle the workload, the problem is the boring curriculum.

In China the kids take on an extraordinary workload, because long hours show dedication - but they're not learning effectively - instead they all cheat, bribe the teacher, etc.

The appearance of working hard and actually working hard/effectively are two different things. Don't be fooled by cultures with endemic corruption.

Germany obviously excluded.

Re: Stop Penalizing Boys for Not Being Able to Sit Still at School

#82

Earlier quoted context omitted.

And what of the needs of the other kids in the room, who might need to be able to hear what the teacher is saying? A whispered request for clarification on something the teacher just said is one thing. 15 separate conversations about the latest Call of Duty and who made out with whom while the teacher tries to explain material is disruptive.

What's also a good thing is social time with your peers. We separate kids based on age, based on which random class they're thrown in, and in bigger schools, which random lunch time they are assigned. None of these may match up with their friends outside of class time. Perhaps there would be less classroom disruption if friends could have time together outside of the one class they took together knowing that would be…

> Perhaps there would be less classroom disruption if friends could have time together outside of the one class they took together knowing that would be the only time they could be together?

There is. School ends at 2:30, upon which point they can enlist in formal or informal shared after-school activities. Turning classes into a free-for-all where no one needs to afford the teacher and other students any respect for their time and attention isn't a great option.

Plus, most classes I took in high school had plenty of group projects, small discussion groups, etc. that allowed for social interaction with friends in a non-lecture context.

Re: Stop Penalizing Boys for Not Being Able to Sit Still at School

#83
I had a H.S. teacher admit to my mother that she was grading me on a scale that included how "distracted" I was by my girlfriend in the class. Little did she know that we had broken up months prior, and every guy in the class was probably distracted by her at some point.

I had a second teacher that was giving myself and my friends lower grades in computer class, because we were "goofing off" -- making websites, chat portals, playing with VB, etc. After completing our weekly assignments in the first day of the week, we were applying ourselves to higher levels of computing, which she equated to us not doing our work; in reality, she had no idea what we were actually doing or what a computer could be made to do that wasn't outlined in her spiral-bound curriculum. Let's take it out on these meddling kids!

Re: Stop Penalizing Boys for Not Being Able to Sit Still at School

#84
I was one of the calm and orderly boys in school. However, this was because merely being at school where I didn't want to be made me mostly lethargic. I didn't have any energy left to make a scene as I was busy counting hours until the day ended. To be precise, since the first week of the first grade I practically counted days till the end of high school when I knew this suffering would end.

I did get good grades not because I was interested but because school was way too easy. I never even studied for exams except the last evening before, and that was mostly glancing at the books, yet I was always among the handful of best in the classroom. That is, until teenage when I realize I don't need all this bullshit and deliberately began to focus only on the few interesting subjects the school had to offer, and defocus on everything else. Didn't do too bad even after that.

I still think it was such a waste of years, and I'm trying to imagine a better way to waste it. I can come up with lots of ideas but very few of them would fit all people. I would've enjoyed a more fast-paced and in-depth classes of my favorite topic at the expense of the subjects I wasn't interested. I think different people ultimately need different kind of environment to be taught in, and I think that the current homogeneous standard schooling is likely to kill more of natural curiosity than sow it. I don't think any standard schooling works for all, unless it's so reduced down to the very, very basics (reading, writing, basic arithmetics) that everyone absolutely needs and which they can build on top of.

Re: Stop Penalizing Boys for Not Being Able to Sit Still at School

#85
post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My personal goal is to figure out how to make enough money to keep my children out of the insanity of public schools. It doesn't necessarily take a lot of money to homeschool children. (Been there, still doing that.) It does take agreement among the parents about what lifestyle adjustments each parent is willing to make so that children have flexibility in their learning. My oldest son, now a programmer working for a…

I find it peculiar that you regularly cite scientific studies of this and that, and yet you are using this terribly misleading, n-of-1 implication that home schooling is why your oldest son has the success he has. Do you really think that children cannot do exactly the same thing coming out of a public school, and if so, why?

How on earth did you read that out of what was said? He implied that homeschooling was advantageous, and said that his son felt it was.

> "That has made it very easy for me[...]"

No, he obviously does not think that public school students are incapable of leadership positions in startups.

Re: Stop Penalizing Boys for Not Being Able to Sit Still at School

#86

At least one of my three boys would have an incredibly hard time with this. He's definitely "aspie" in a lot of respects. The decision to home educate our 4 children is hands down the best decision we've ever made. Highly recommend it, if you are able to pull it off logistically. Very rewarding experience so far.

I just want to say that you might want to consider public high school. There's a lot of social development going on there, even if most people come out of the entire system bitter.

I'd rather they not develop 'socially' the way most high-schoolers do: conform to the group, if you're different you're wrong. Our children get plenty of socialization among their cousins and other home-schooled friends.

Re: Stop Penalizing Boys for Not Being Able to Sit Still at School

#87
I definitely recommend clicking on the "related story" link to "The War Against Boys", written by Christina Sommers in 2000. American education has been failing boys for quite some time now. All parents have a responsibility to educate themselves on this topic.

Re: Stop Penalizing Boys for Not Being Able to Sit Still at School

#89

School is half education and half babysitting. The problem is that schools aren't aware of that, and they try to cram too much learning/work into a day at school. Kids just don't have the attention span. College isn't taught this way. Colleges realize that even young adults can't handle 40 hours a week of continual instruction, why do we do this kids can? I think the reason, is that we're always behind other countrie…

Yours is an interesting comment, but none of it is responsive to the submitted article's concern about differences between boys and girls in school. I have actually lived in another country, and I am aware by direct observation that that country has BOTH higher academic achievement by school pupils than the United States and pervasive recess periods during the school day when young children get outdoors and exercise.…

[deleted]

Re: Stop Penalizing Boys for Not Being Able to Sit Still at School

#90

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What's also a good thing is social time with your peers. We separate kids based on age, based on which random class they're thrown in, and in bigger schools, which random lunch time they are assigned. None of these may match up with their friends outside of class time. Perhaps there would be less classroom disruption if friends could have time together outside of the one class they took together knowing that would be…

> Perhaps there would be less classroom disruption if friends could have time together outside of the one class they took together knowing that would be the only time they could be together? There is. School ends at 2:30, upon which point they can enlist in formal or informal shared after-school activities. Turning classes into a free-for-all where no one needs to afford the teacher and other students any respect for…

Problem is, there are no buses that take the kids home from their after-school activities. I don't know where you live, but there are many school districts in the US where kids can't walk home or expect their parents to drive them to and from school or a friend's house.

When I was in school, my house was an hour and a half bus ride from school. My parents worked in the other direction. Outside of being at school, there was no hope for social interaction unless we were in town for a festival. I'm also not arguing for turning classes into a free for all. I pretty explicitly said there should be room for social interaction outside of class. In districts with split lunch hours, there's literally no free-form social interaction unless you're on one of the last buses to leave at the end of the day.

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