Raising Boys: Why Boys Drop out of School More than Girls

By Yolanda Spivey

According to the National Center for Educational Statistics, “boys are 30 percent more likely than girls to flunk or drop out of school,” and researchers are trying to figure out why. They also make up two-thirds of the students in special education classes.

Although there are more boy geniuses than girl geniuses and boys on a higher scale have greater IQ’s than girls, they are still not faring well in a public school setting.

American psychologist and co-author of the book, Raising Cain, Michael Thompson, Ph.D., told PBSparents.org that “the average American boy is struggling in school.”  He further states, “For the average boy, school is not as good a fit as it is for the average girl. More boys have problems with attention and focus than girls.

He further states that boys are more likely to get into more trouble than girls because they have a higher activity level.  They are five times more likely to be classified as hyperactive. Boys often soar when they are doing a physical activity than sitting in one space for a long period of time.

Here are some other alarming statistics from the National Center for Educational Statistics:

• When it comes to grades and homework, girls outperform boys in elementary, secondary, high school, college, and even graduate school;
• Boys are four to five times more likely than girls to be diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD);
• Women outnumber men in higher education with 56 percent of bachelor’s degrees and 55 percent of graduate degrees going to women.

Parents shouldn’t be alarmed by this news because there is help. PBSparents.org gives the following helpful strategies that would help boys adjust better at school:

• Let them play.
• Create learning activities where boys are more hands-on and more physical.
• Let boys read books that appeal to their interests.
• Read aloud to boys and have them read aloud to you.
• Allow boys to write about what interests them instead of what interests you.
• Allow discussion of topics boys may want to talk about.
• Allow boys to express humor in appropriate ways and at appropriate times.