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Girls perform better academically in almost all countries (2015)

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Re: Girls perform better academically in almost all countries (2015)

#291

This is anecdotal but I'm sure many people are seen this increasingly. In the past 10 years on the job, I'm seeing more guys make jokes about how stupid they are. Every time they make a single mistake they say "oh my God, if my head wasn't attached to my shoulders..." Then it becomes a competition of who has done the dumbest thing. I know it's just being playful, but you rarely see the opposite. Turn the tables, I wa…

Women avoid saying such self-deprecating things because they already have a tougher time than men being listened to, taken seriously, promoted, etc. Not that there aren't exceptions, but most women are acutely aware of how they act and are perceived at work because they start off at a disadvantage. I imagine few men ever think "will my gender get in the way of my ideas, or my work relationships or my career trajectory?".

Re: Girls perform better academically in almost all countries (2015)

#292
post #141

Anyone with young boys and girls will notice that girls are much more likely to obey rules and instructions. A lot of doing well in school is about following rules and instructions, and it seems pretty natural that girls will do better. Also, most teachers are women. I haven't checked, but I'd assume most school administrators are women. It seems natural that they'd construct a system that's more suited for females t…

As the father of 6 years old twins (one boy, one girl) I agree with this 100%. My son needs more discipline than my daughter, he's more likely to get into trouble at school, he likes physical activities, etc. almost the opposite of his sister.

> son needs more discipline

This does not seem like the right conclusion. More like "needs running around time and free play".

Cf. e.g. https://www.alfiekohn.org/article/discipline-problem-solutio... https://www.alfiekohn.org/article/beyond-discipline-article/

Re: Girls perform better academically in almost all countries (2015)

#293

Then why do boys/men seem better at inventing things (edit: from past statistics)?

where did you get that idea

Just think of any random invention, then look up on Wikipedia who was the inventor. Repeat a bunch of times, and you get the idea. (And please don't respond with cherry-picked examples.)

Re: Girls perform better academically in almost all countries (2015)

#294

Earlier quoted context omitted.

None of this explains why women are capable of following these rules and men are not. Are you saying men are biologically predisposed to not follow such simple rules?

When the rules are to "sit still" and "be quiet", yes, probably so. Boys are diagnosed with ADHD at a rate of 12.9% vs 5.6% for girls [1]. I've heard many counselors and psychologists (in my counseling program) suggest that many cases are misdiagnosed. Sit in any classroom or ask any teacher who their problem children are, and they're almost always boys. They're louder, more violent, more likely to disobey, and have…

Are all boys a problem?

And it should be noted -- it's not the boys that are the problem it is the schools.

Raise young boys in a way that is completely stifling and unnatural compared to how boys were raised for tens of thousands years based on our evolution, and then diagnose these boys as having a mental problem. No, it is society that has the mental problem.

Re: Girls perform better academically in almost all countries (2015)

#295

White guy here. No regular male is silly enough to stay on University here. Think about it. There are lots of foreigners but no locals.

How your skin color is relevant?

The point is that status is low and working conditions poor and you're not respected - see the lack of American STEM grad students who realize they are basically pawns of the profs and administration who just listen to the lawyers and undergrads who pay the bills (outside of top research institutions)

Re: Girls perform better academically in almost all countries (2015)

#296

Earlier quoted context omitted.

When the rules are to "sit still" and "be quiet", yes, probably so. Boys are diagnosed with ADHD at a rate of 12.9% vs 5.6% for girls [1]. I've heard many counselors and psychologists (in my counseling program) suggest that many cases are misdiagnosed. Sit in any classroom or ask any teacher who their problem children are, and they're almost always boys. They're louder, more violent, more likely to disobey, and have…

I don't disagree with any of your assertions, but it remains a mystery how women then are excluded from top jobs if they do better in middle school through college and are less likely to be diagnosed with something that would impair their job performance.

Landing a "top job" is a zero sum game: on top of skill and intellect, you've also got to put in more labor and hours than anyone else to get there. For a large constellation of reasons, women are more likely to choose to put extra hours into childcare, and men are more likely to choose to put extra hours into the kind of market labor that lends itself to reaching those top tier jobs.

Re: Girls perform better academically in almost all countries (2015)

#297
post #66

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Having Babies. Really, being a mother is what skews most stats about women on money issues. There has been policymaking about this in a bunch of european countries, and if they are released from financial constrains (handouts, public housing, whatever) they seem to double down on it. Let's face it, working, for most people, is something you do out of necessity. Why do we really expect women to have a similar behaviou…

> Why do we really expect women to have a similar behaviour of men about work, when they have a socially aceptable and now economical venue to avoid it. Baby raising is quite important work. I would argue that raising the next generation of workers, taxpayer, customers and pension fund contributors is the most important work of all.

No one disagrees. We literally have a day to celebrate that and societies for millennia have cherished that. Many wars have been fought in essence so the mothers of their group would have better conditions to be a mother in as it gives their offspring the best chance to thrive.

Most everyone loves their mom more than anything else.

Re: Girls perform better academically in almost all countries (2015)

#298

Anyone with young boys and girls will notice that girls are much more likely to obey rules and instructions. A lot of doing well in school is about following rules and instructions, and it seems pretty natural that girls will do better. Also, most teachers are women. I haven't checked, but I'd assume most school administrators are women. It seems natural that they'd construct a system that's more suited for females t…

Girls the same age are more mature than boys. They develop differently. Maybe that's a factor?

I've always heard this as a kid/young adult but as I've grown older, I've noticed that most people don't ever mature (well, at least not until 35-ish) so I've started doubting all claims and folk-wisdom about maturity pretty much wholesale...

Re: Girls perform better academically in almost all countries (2015)

#299
post #141

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As the father of 6 years old twins (one boy, one girl) I agree with this 100%. My son needs more discipline than my daughter, he's more likely to get into trouble at school, he likes physical activities, etc. almost the opposite of his sister.

> son needs more discipline This does not seem like the right conclusion. More like "needs running around time and free play". Cf. e.g. https://www.alfiekohn.org/article/discipline-problem-solutio... https://www.alfiekohn.org/article/beyond-discipline-article/

Discipline is probably the wrong word. More training in order to succeed in an unnatural environment (modern school) is maybe a better way to put it.

Re: Girls perform better academically in almost all countries (2015)

#300

Anyone with young boys and girls will notice that girls are much more likely to obey rules and instructions. A lot of doing well in school is about following rules and instructions, and it seems pretty natural that girls will do better. Also, most teachers are women. I haven't checked, but I'd assume most school administrators are women. It seems natural that they'd construct a system that's more suited for females t…

> I'd assume most school administrators are women. At least in the United States, this isn’t at all true. A disproportionate number of administrators (especially when adjusted for the normal male/female teacher breakdown) are male. There have also been many studies that show that teachers call on boys more, praised them more (they acknowledge girls, praise boys), and talk with them more. So your assumptions are compl…

https://www.bbc.com/news/education-31751672

Teachers are more lenient in their marking of girls' schoolwork, according to an international study.

An OECD report on gender in education, across more than 60 countries, found that girls receive higher marks compared with boys of the same ability.

When it comes to teachers' marking, the study says there is a consistent pattern of girls' work being "marked up".

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