PLATFORM : Don’t Fault Teachers

I find it difficult to lay the blame for girls’ underachievement on educators. As a teacher, I agree that in the classroom boys demand more attention than girls, but teachers alone cannot neutralize male aggressiveness; society in general and parents in particular must equalize gender attention.

Educators are initiating change, and I was astonished by the report’s finding that girls are “tracked toward traditional, sex-segregated jobs and away from areas of study that lead to high-paying jobs in science, technology and engineering.” At our school, for example, the School Improvement Plan’s component on computers targets curricular changes that will stimulate girls’ interest in technology.

Certainly women have not reached equity with men, but they are gaining, and that is partially because teachers have encouraged girls to follow their dreams and fight for their rights.