The New Gender Gap

　　When the leaders of the Class of 2003 assemble in Lawrence High's fluorescent-lit1 meetingrooms, most of the boys are nowhere to be seen. The senior class president? A girl. The vice -president? Girl.

　　Head of student government? Girl. Captain of the math team, chief of the yearbook, and editorof the newspaper? Girls. The female lock on power at Lawrence is emblematic of a stunninggender reversal in American education. From kindergarten to graduate school, boys are fastbecoming the second sex.

　　It may still be a man's world . But it is no longer, in any way, a boy's. From his first days inschool, an average boy is already developmentally two years behind the girls in reading andwriting. Yet he's often expected to learn the same things in the same way in the same amountof time. While every nerve in his body tells him to run, he has to sit still and listen for almosteight hours a day. Biologically, he needs about four recesses a day, but he's lucky if he getsone, since some lawsuit-leery schools have banned them altogether. Hug a girl, and he couldbe labeled a" toucher”and swiftly suspended — a result of what some say is an increasinglyanti-boy culture that pathologizes their behavior.

　　Overall, more boys and girls are in college than a generation ago. But when adjusted forpopulation growth, the percentage of boys entering college , master's programs, and mostdoctoral programs — except for PhDs2 in fields like engineering and computer science — hasmostly stalled out, whereas for women it has continued to rise across the board. The trend ismost pronounced among Hispanics, African Americans, and those from low-income families.

　　Instead of catering to boys'learning styles, others argue, many schools are force-fitting theminto an unnatural mold. The reigning sit-still-and-listen paradigm isn't ideal for either sex.

　　Experts say educators should focus on helping boys feel less like misfits. Experts are designingnew developmentally appropriate, child-initiated learning that concentrates on problem-solving,not just test-taking. This approach benefits both sexes but especially boys, given that theytend to learn best through action, not just talk. Activities are geared toward the child's interestlevel and temperament. Boys, for example, can learn math through counting pinecones, biologythrough mucking around in a pond. They can read Harry Potter instead of Little House on thePrairie , and write about aliens attacking a hospital rather than about how to care for people inthe hospital.

　　Indeed, brain research shows that boys are actually more empathic, expressive, and emotive atbirth than girls. But the boy code , which bathes them in a culture of stoicism and reticence,often socializes those aptitudes out of them by the second grade ."We now have executivespaying 10 , 000 a week to learn emotional intelligence,"says Pollock."These are actually theskills boys are born with."

　　A new world has opened up for girls, but unless a symmetrical effort is made to help boys findtheir footing, it may turn out that it's a lonely place to be.

　　練習(xí)題：

　　Ⅰ. Complete the following sentences with the words given:

　　banned geared labeled revealed

　　1. Would you please hand me the bottle wisdom.

　　2. Many classical books were once criticized and thus by the authorities.

　　3. Research has how huge the gap between the poor and the rich is.

　　4. This game is toward a better and faster response.

　　Ⅱ. Question:

　　Why did experts design new developmentally appropriate, child-initiated learning?

　　Ⅰ. 1. labeled 2. banned 3. revealed 4 . geared

　　Ⅱ. Because that concentrates on problem-solving, not just test-taking.

　　男孩女孩, 孰為第二性?

　　在勞倫斯中學(xué)里, 當(dāng)2003屆的學(xué)生干部在燈火通明的會議室開會時, 男生們大都無處可覓。畢業(yè)班班長是女生, 副班長是女生, 學(xué)生自治會主席是女生, 數(shù)學(xué)組組長、年鑒主編、校報編輯也是女生。

　　女生在勞倫斯中學(xué)掌權(quán), 這反映出美國教育界令人吃驚的陰盛陽衰現(xiàn)象。從幼兒園到研究生院, 男生正迅速淪為從屬性別。

　　這也許依然是男人的世界。但無論從哪個方面看, 這個世界都不是男孩的世界。從踏入校門開始, 男孩在閱讀和寫作上就已經(jīng)比女孩平均落后了兩年, 因為男孩發(fā)育較晚。然而, 人們卻往往期望男孩在同樣多的時間里以同樣的方式學(xué)習(xí)同樣的東西。男孩身上的每根神經(jīng)都使他想要四處跑動, 可他卻不得不一動不動地坐著, 每天聽差不多8 小時的課。

　　從生物學(xué)的角度看, 他每天大約需要4節(jié)游戲課, 可他能有一節(jié)游戲課就算萬幸了, 因為有些學(xué)校違反規(guī)定, 完全取消了游戲課。如果他擁抱了一名女孩, 可能會背上“ 色狼”的惡名, 動輒被學(xué)校開除。之所以造成這種結(jié)果, 正如有人所說, 是因為存在著一種越來越違背男孩本性的文化, 從而造成男孩的行為異常。

　　從整體上看, 大學(xué)中男生和女生的人數(shù)比上一代人增加了。但是, 如果把人口增長因素考慮進去, 那么, 男孩讀大學(xué)、碩士和博士( 在工程和計算機科學(xué)等少數(shù)學(xué)科讀博士的男孩 除外) 的比例, 基本上已停止增長。而女孩讀大學(xué)、碩士和博士的比例卻繼續(xù)全面增長。

　　在西班牙裔美國人、非洲裔美國人和來自低收入家庭的美國人中, 女孩的這種增長趨勢最為明顯。

　　有人認(rèn)為, 許多學(xué)校不是去適應(yīng)男孩的學(xué)習(xí)方式, 而是強迫他們接受違背其天性的做法。讓孩子一動不動地坐著聽老師講課, 這種盛行的做法無論對男孩還是女孩都不是最好方法。

　　專家們說教育工作者應(yīng)重點幫助男孩逐步消除認(rèn)為自己不適應(yīng)學(xué)習(xí)的感覺。他們正在根據(jù)兒童自己的意見, 設(shè)計符合兒童發(fā)育規(guī)律的新的學(xué)習(xí)方法。這種方法重視培養(yǎng)解決問題的能力, 而不是一味強調(diào)考試。它使男孩和女孩都能從中受益, 但男孩受益更大, 因為他們通過動手而不只是動嘴的方法能取得最好的學(xué)習(xí)效果。這種方法專門針對孩子的興趣和性情安排相應(yīng)的活動。例如, 男孩可采取數(shù)松果的方式學(xué)習(xí)數(shù)學(xué), 通過在池塘邊玩耍的方式學(xué)習(xí)生物。他們閱讀的書可以是《哈利· 波特》, 而不是《大草原上的小木屋》; 他們作文的內(nèi)容可以是外星人襲擊一所醫(yī)院, 而不是如何在醫(yī)院里照顧病人。

　　的確, 大腦研究表明, 實際上男孩生來就比女孩更富有同情心, 更善于表達, 也更容易受感動。但是, 人們給男孩樹立的標(biāo)準(zhǔn)卻要求他們寵辱不驚, 沉默寡言。所以, 他們到二年級時就被社會化了, 從而喪失了這些天性。波拉克說:“ 現(xiàn)在, 一些公司高層管理人員不惜每周花費1 萬美元, 去培養(yǎng)情感能力。實際上, 對男孩來說這些能力是與生俱來的。”一個新的世界已展現(xiàn)在女孩面前。但是, 如果不下功夫幫助男孩在這個世界里找到自的位置, 那么, 這個世界終將是一個孤獨的世界。

　　1. 熒光燈照亮的。相似構(gòu)詞法: well-lighted house ( 照明充足的房間) ; student-centered teachingmethod ( 以學(xué)生為中心的教學(xué)法) 。

　　2. 即philosophy doctor ( 哲學(xué)博士) 。MA =Master of Arts ( 文科碩士) ;MS =Master of Science( 理科碩士) ; BA = Bachelor of Arts ( 文學(xué)士) ; BS = Bachelor of Science ( 理學(xué)士) 。