Essay 1.1 (Rebuttal)

In the L.A. Times Editorial section you will find that there is a post bringing light to the gender gap in colleges and universities all across America. Many wonder as to why this is, and see this as a growing issue. Females are now being admitted at higher a rate, which is an accomplishment in itself, but the males are being admitted with a slight boost to keep diversity. In the editorial the authors brings in certain speculations as to why this is such as males needing special attention, how they take in information and even race/ethnicity. However these factors may excuse a small percentage of males, it does not excuse all males.

Some may ask the question; what is happening with the education of males in this country? In USA Today, Mary Beth Marklein speculates, “…female majority may be higher education’s new normal.” In the editorial the author mentions that the University of California’s UCLA campus admits an equal percentage of female and male applicants, resulting in 800 more women than men. As the author in the L.A. Times article mentioned, there are different types of learning styles for both male and females. This author mentioned that males are more likely to learn by using senses; visual or working with their hands, and that schools should accommodate to these needs.

The question is do colleges need to change all the time for every single type of student? The answer would have to be no. Linda Sax, a scholar in gender issues, writes in Her College Experience Is Not His that both male and females have to overcome their own challenges in order to obtain a good college education. She continues to say that women put a greater emphasis on the value of education, devoting more time to school work than men do and achieve higher in academics, creating a larger gap. Sax and the author of the editorial both agree, “…colleges need to consider strategies for encouraging greater academic engagement among male students”. Is this really the best solution? Valeria E. Lee and David T. Burkam, authors of Inequality at the Starting Line, may disagree.

In Lee and Burkam’s book, they state that the inequalities of children’s mental aptitude begin at the “starting gate”. This refers to the notion that not all children start off as equals going into Kindergarten. The main factor that is observed in measuring the “inequality” of students is the socioeconomic status (SES) of the child and family. The National Center for Education Statistics defines SES as a measure of an individual or family’s relative economic and social ranking. From there, schooling can magnify those inequalities due to low resources and funding. Along with schooling, family and social backgrounds can influence the success or failure of a child’s potential to achieve a good education; these factors include race and ethnicity, poverty, parenting structure, and the education level of the parent(s) (Lee and Burkam).

With race being stated, there is another gap within races in education. Statistics from Inequality at the Starting Gate shows that there are “substantial differences by race and ethnicity in children’s test scores at they begin kindergarten”. SES and race are interconnected. An example given by Lee and Burkam is the 34% of Black children and 29% Hispanic children are the lowest scoring, while only 9% of White children fall within that range.

With this being said, there is more to than just being a male that affects the academic success of an individual. Yes males and females minds are wired differently, affecting how they work, but there is more to the genetics. There are always going to be challenges that each gender must overcome. The family life based on socioeconomic status and even race need to be factored into this equation in order to gain a “deeper understanding of the nuances and implications of the gender gap in college” (Sax).

Works Cited

"College's Gender Gap: Women Now Out Number Men in Both Applying to Schools and Earning Degrees." L.A. Times 15 Jan 2010, Web.

"The Condition of Education." IES:National Center for Education Statistics. IES, Web. 5 Feb 2010.

Lee, Valerie E, and David T Burkam. Inequality at the Starting Gate: Social Background Differences in Achievement as Children Begin School. Economic Policy Institute, 2002. Summary. Web.

Marklein, Mary Beth. "College Gender Gap is Stable." USA Today 01 Jan 2010: n. pag. Web. 6 Feb 2010.

Sax, Linda. "Her College Experience Is Not His." Chronicle of Higher Education 55.5 (2008): 32-33. Web. 6 Feb 2010.