SCHOOL FOR THOUGHT

Where are the boys?

Here’s another thought-provoking excerpt from Campus Confidential, this one on the academic gender gap. After documenting the trend towards fewer men in university (fully 60% of graduates are female), they go on to say the following (p. 187).

“So what happens to the young men who, in large and growing numbers, are not doing well in school, have trouble finding high-paying, stable jobs and a marriage partner, and don’t seem to fit into the service-oriented twenty-first century economy?

“We’re in the midst of finding out. One segment of Canadian society - First Nations people - provides a grim warning. First Nations women are far more likely to go to university than men. Once educated, they tend to stay in urban centres and often marry outside their First Nation. The young men, in turn, are educationally disenfranchised, without work or prospects, and often live in communities where many of the most talented, well-educated and active women have left. They often feel they have no future. The result? Frustration, anger, abuse, and self-destructive behaviour.

“Elsewhere in Canadian society, many families know exactly where these young men have gone. When you tell an audience that you have found the missing young men - they are in their parents’ basements playing video games and working just enough to keep themselves in male toys - the bitter laughter from a sizable portion of the audience lets you know you are right. Add to this the reality of boomerang children - kids who return home after a period of time of near independence - and you have pinpointed one of the most serious generational challenges of the early twenty-first century.”

To find out what you can do to guard against this fate for the young boys in your life, visit our site dedicated to this problem.