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Leaving Too Many Boys Behind & The Facts About Gender Equity in Education

Wisconsin State Journal Editorial:

When the State Journal this week published the list of the top 4 percent of this year 's graduating seniors from Dane County high schools, girls outnumbered boys by nearly two to one.

That academic gender gap highlights a national problem with costly consequences: Boys are falling behind in the American educational system.

The dominance of girls among high school honors students is only the tip of the problem. The most alarming aspect is the scarcity of men earning college degrees.

Since 1970, the number of women enrolling in college has risen three times faster than the number of men.

Women now receive 60 percent of all associate, bachelor 's and master 's degrees.

American Association of University Women:

Where the Girls Are: The Facts About Gender Equity in Education presents a comprehensive look at girls’ educational achievement during the past 35 years, paying special attention to the relationship between girls’ and boys’ progress. Analyses of results from national standardized tests, such as the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) and the SAT and ACT college entrance examinations, as well as other measures of educational achievement, provide an overall picture of trends in gender equity from elementary school to college and beyond.

Valeria Strauss has more.

Posted by Jim Zellmer at May 21, 2008 8:33 AM
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