Publication date:
22 September 2017Length of book:
120 pagesPublisher
Rowman & Littlefield PublishersISBN-13: 9781475836950
This book traces back how male students are currently disadvantaged in school by instruction in an overwhelmingly female environment devoid of male role models, who can inspire the love of learning in male students. Further, teachers are unduly influenced by biases related to compliant behaviors which result in conflating assessments of student academic achievement with compliance. Therefore, males’ marks prevent to many from qualifying for courses leading to leading as well as achieving sufficiently high marks in those courses.
Do you believe that you’re an advocate for critical thinking? Read Jim Dueck’s book and evaluate your reactions, which I think will include surprise, rage, affirmation, disagreement, and a host of other emotional reactions. Dueck is not a provocateur, but has marshaled the weight of the evidence to suggest three overwhelmingly powerful conclusions. First, males and females are evaluated and educated in dramatically different ways from an early age. There is no malice here - just fact. Second, these differences not only harm boys in the short-term - with differences in discipline and academic expectations - but also hurt girls who receive erroneous message about the value of compliance and submission. Third, and most hopefully, educators and school leaders can address these disparities in a positive and constructive way. This book is not really just about our male students, but all of our students, and how society can benefit when we do a better job of giving women and men accurate feedback and equal opportunities. Readers should expect to take issue of some of Dueck’s claims, but they will find this level of challenging intellectual engagement with such a thoughtful advocate rewarding and thought-provoking.