Why do boys hate reading?

[RobertFKennedy]

don't forget the part where they blame the teachers for Johnny and Janie's lack of skills!

No all teachers are great and many of them have a lot to answer for.

 

[RobertFKennedy]

In reading your reply, it reminds me of a student that I currently have. In his class, the cool thing is to not get good grades or to participate in class. He does the "simple bull" practice very convincingly, but he really knows the material every day. I know because whenever I ask a question, his eyes just radiate with the "I know the answer" look and he aces tests while his friends get 20% scores. While he has the intelligence to do it, he doesn't have the emotional intelligence to be a maverick and change friends.

Maybe he likes his friends. Intellectual snobbery cuts both ways.

 

[RobertFKennedy]

That's a shame, for sure. Schools around here have a zero-tolerance policy. ANY physical fight results in the police being called to the school immediately. The bully wouldn't just have a week off school, she'd have been arrested, then and there.

And that's absolutley ridiculous. Teachers and common sense eh?

 

[RobertFKennedy]

Sorry but the simple truth is that in schools, boys are rarely given anything to read that is remotely interesting or applicable to their interests today.

That's my experience. I was forced to endure the trials of William Golding's The Inheritors and Evelyn Waugh's Scoop. I really resented this utter crap infinging on my personal reading time and most guys and girls I knew felt the same.

 

[The waveguide]

Sorry, I do not agree that boys read less. Depends where you are doing your statistics. I have majored in physics, so everybody around me (70%) were men, around 50% of those were reading.
If you are looking in literatute department of university, probaly 70% will be women, and you will think that there are not so many "boys" reading. The problem with statistics is just how you do it. Also my father reads more than my mother, because after she is back from her work, she coocks, washes, takes care of my kid-sister, while he is reading a paper or a book. My mom really loves reading, but for every book that she reads my father reads 10 books more.

 

[Motokid]

For the record, when I think about "boys" , I'm thinking children. Kids. Under the age of 14-16ish years old. Not college aged men. Not techno-geeks studying physics for a major. Come on. Talk about cutting down to the smallest segment of society to base your arguement. Physic's majors?

As for RFK's comments....I'll need some more time to digest some of that flatulence. I don't know where you grew up, or how old you are or nothing. I can only speak from my perspective growing up in America during the late 60's, 70's, & early 80's.

I certainly would've, and did build models. Model rockets, warplanes, warships, tanks.....and played with them endlessly. "Doing" anything was better than sitting and reading. Reading sucked. It was punishment. I wanted to be outside. Doing things. There was always something to do outside as a kid with other kids. As I said in an earlier post. If the choice is reading about riding motorcycles, or actually riding a motorcycle I know where my choice is going to be.

And if you don't think my generalizations about men and women are right on the money I don't know what planet you live on. Men are the builders and the conquerers. They make war. They destroy. They fight. Women are the nurturers. The caregivers. The teachers. The soft touch. You can't seriously argue that a broad generalization like that is not true.

 

[SFG75]

Sorry, I do not agree that boys read less. Depends where you are doing your statistics. I have majored in physics, so everybody around me (70%) were men, around 50% of those were reading.
If you are looking in literatute department of university, probaly 70% will be women, and you will think that there are not so many "boys" reading. The problem with statistics is just how you do it. Also my father reads more than my mother, because after she is back from her work, she coocks, washes, takes care of my kid-sister, while he is reading a paper or a book. My mom really loves reading, but for every book that she reads my father reads 10 books more.

Welcome to TBF!. Glad to have you aboard here and that you've been posting a bit. I'm not certain about statistics about who majors in what or how things shake out at the post-secondary level. With that being said, there have been some interesting research findings regarding the literacy gender gap. The U.K. Literacy Trust organization is chock full of statistics regarding this gap utilizing standardized tests. For those of us in the states, the NAEP releases standardized scores relating to proficiency-the statistics also show a discrepancy as well. One of the more interesting musings can be found at the Tasmania education department. Evidently, "hegemonic masculinity" among other things is to blame.

 

[SFG75]

No all teachers are great and many of them have a lot to answer for.

Yeah, I'll grant you that. At the same time, it's a mistaken notion that after two or three years, that removing a teacher is impossible. All an administrator has to do is collect evidence that the person isn't doing their job and that they possess horrid teaching methods and point these out during an appeal meeting. The problem is that many administrators are just plum too lazy to do anything about the trash of the profession, other than trying to pass it on to other districts. Going through an appeals meeting is not exactly a cup of tea, and many will turn in their resignations before ever going through with one. Heck, I knew one guy who retired when the administrators sat in his room every day. She left his room after he turned in his letter of resignation.

 

[Motokid]

You'll have evidence to support this of course. I think this is an incredible claim.

I'm sure there's huge piles of evidence. Look at standardized test scores. Boys typically do better in math and science and girls typically do better in English and language.

 

[SFG75]

This thread is without doubt the most ridiculous I've ever seen on this forum.

Actually, studies have shown that the topic is a valid concern in education and literacy studies.

I could give a plethora of studies, but I neither have the time or interest to provide them.

. . . girls as a group possessed more favorable attitudes than boys at all grade levels, toward both recreational and academic reading. In the case of recreational attitude, this gap widened with age, while in the case of academic attitude, it remained relatively constant. These gender differences appeared to be unrelated to ability.

U.K. Literacy Trust

 

[Motokid]

You'll be able to back up that the majority of males prefer building models (!) to reading of course. It's just that I have never met a single male who prefers making models to reading.

You are 25 years old and your number one interest is reading....gee...no wonder you don't know anybody who may be interested in other things....

At 25 I was playing in a rock band in bars, racing motorcycles, and heavily involved in getting into my girlfriends pants....not always in that order....

In high school I was a four year letterman in soccer and co-captian of the team my senior year. I was also in a rock band then too, and the girls thing was in high gear then also. Sports, girls, music, partying and hanging with friends was tops on my list at 25. I think I'm a better representation of society in general than you are RFK.

Just the simple fact that you are a part of this forum, and an admitted reader sets you apart from the general population.

And this thread is about boys in general. Not 25 year olds. You can't take your specific experience and trash the basic notion of this thread.

 

[cajunmama]

And that's absolutley ridiculous. Teachers and common sense eh?

Huh? You lost me. I don't understand the connection you draw between teachers and common sense and the policy of a student who assaults another student being arrested. Could you elaborate?

 

[RobertFKennedy]

For the record, when I think about "boys" , I'm thinking children. Kids. Under the age of 14-16ish years old. Not college aged men. Not techno-geeks studying physics for a major. Come on. Talk about cutting down to the smallest segment of society to base your arguement. Physic's majors?

As for RFK's comments....I'll need some more time to digest some of that flatulence. I don't know where you grew up, or how old you are or nothing. I can only speak from my perspective growing up in America during the late 60's, 70's, & early 80's.

I certainly would've, and did build models. Model rockets, warplanes, warships, tanks.....and played with them endlessly. "Doing" anything was better than sitting and reading. Reading sucked. It was punishment. I wanted to be outside. Doing things. There was always something to do outside as a kid with other kids. As I said in an earlier post. If the choice is reading about riding motorcycles, or actually riding a motorcycle I know where my choice is going to be.

And if you don't think my generalizations about men and women are right on the money I don't know what planet you live on. Men are the builders and the conquerers. They make war. They destroy. They fight. Women are the nurturers. The caregivers. The teachers. The soft touch. You can't seriously argue that a broad generalization like that is not true.

The debate is about males and females. My profile should tell you what you want to know about me.

Throughout my life I have always found time to do lots of different things but have always found time to read as well.

your specific comments about men and women were charicatures, and not very good ones. For every cold, agressive man I'll show you a cold, aggressive woman and for every loving, warm woman I'll show you a loving warm man.

"And if you don't think my generalizations about men and women are right on the money I don't know what planet you live on. Men are the builders and the conquerers. They make war. They destroy. They fight. Women are the nurturers. The caregivers. The teachers. The soft touch. You can't seriously argue that a broad generalization like that is not true"

I find these comments really astonishing. Pope John Paul II. Condoleeza Rice. Mahatma Ghandi. Ann Coulter. The examples are endless.

 

[RobertFKennedy]

I'm sure there's huge piles of evidence. Look at standardized test scores. Boys typically do better in math and science and girls typically do better in English and language.

I'd love to see some hard evidence to support the assertion that the majority of men do not read. And some that the majority of women do wouldn't go amiss either.

 

[RobertFKennedy]

Actually, studies have shown that the topic is a valid concern in education and literacy studies.

I could give a plethora of studies, but I neither have the time or interest to provide them.


U.K. Literacy Trust

You misunderstand me SFG75, there is nothing wrong with the topic. Its some of the commentary on this thread which is preposterous.

 

[Motokid]

Its some of the commentary on this thread which is preposterous.

Yours specifically....

 

[RobertFKennedy]

Huh? You lost me. I don't understand the connection you draw between teachers and common sense and the policy of a student who assaults another student being arrested. Could you elaborate?

Totally over the top way to deal with kids fighting. sort it out properly within the school. but don't have kids ending up with criminal records because of a fight at school. This is just passing the buck to the cops and maybe ruining a kid's live by giving them a criminal record.
As we all know, the person who didnt cause the fight could end up being punished along with the aggressor.

All depending on the seriousness of course, judging each case on its merits. You said that every fight in school results in police involvement and that is what I found ridiculous.

 

[abecedarian]

Totally over the top way to deal with kids fighting. sort it out properly within the school. but don't have kids ending up with criminal records because of a fight at school. This is just passing the buck to the cops and maybe ruining a kid's live by giving them a criminal record.
As we all know, the person who didnt cause the fight could end up being punished along with the aggressor.

All depending on the seriousness of course, judging each case on its merits. You said that every fight in school results in police involvement and that is what I found ridiculous.

True, I guess it's a backlash against years of kids being bullied and complaining parents being told that "kids will be kids."

 

[RobertFKennedy]

You are 25 years old and your number one interest is reading....gee...no wonder you don't know anybody who may be interested in other things....

At 25 I was playing in a rock band in bars, racing motorcycles, and heavily involved in getting into my girlfriends pants....not always in that order....

In high school I was a four year letterman in soccer and co-captian of the team my senior year. I was also in a rock band then too, and the girls thing was in high gear then also. Sports, girls, music, partying and hanging with friends was tops on my list at 25. I think I'm a better representation of society in general than you are RFK.

Just the simple fact that you are a part of this forum, and an admitted reader sets you apart from the general population.

And this thread is about boys in general. Not 25 year olds. You can't take your specific experience and trash the basic notion of this thread.

"You are 25 years old and your number one interest is reading"
No it's not. What made you think that? did you make it up?

"At 25 I was playing in a rock band in bars, racing motorcycles, and heavily involved in getting into my girlfriends pants....not always in that order....

In high school I was a four year letterman in soccer and co-captian of the team my senior year. I was also in a rock band then too, and the girls thing was in high gear then also. Sports, girls, music, partying and hanging with friends was tops on my list at 25."

My interests are almost a carbon copy of what yours were at 25. Sounds a bit like you are trying to tell us how cool you are though.

"I think I'm a better representation of society in general than you are RFK"

How on earth can you possibly say this with any authority?

"Just the simple fact that you are a part of this forum, and an admitted reader sets you apart from the general population."

I don't accept that at all. An "admitted" reader? Siege mentality perhaps?

I can honestly say that in the UK it is my experience that there is no stigma attached to books or reading for either sex and I see no prevalence with regards to gender as to who reads most.

There can be a small amount of teasing among early teens but thats about it.

 

[RobertFKennedy]

Yours specifically....

Ohhhhhh. Thats a bit feeble.