Monday, August 27, 2012
Interview by Lon Woodbury
Drew Brennan, Head of School at The Academy at Trails, North Carolina, spoke to Lon Woodbury on L.A. Talk Radio regarding just how boys and men in America are in the center of a new sociological dilemma that has never been experienced before in the history of the United States.
Background
Dr. Brennan obtained his Ph.D. in Education from Oregon State University, an M.A. in Counseling Psychology from St. Mary's University, and an M.S. in Experiential Education from Minnesota State University at Mankato. He is currently serving on the Board of Directors for the Association for Experiential Education. Drew enjoys hiking in the woods of Western North Carolina with his spouse and 9-year-old son.
Just what Is The Boy Crisis?
Dr. Brennan started the radio interview with the declaration that the outlook is bleak for our boys and that they are in trouble. At that point, he proceeded to summarize a few of the reasons why boys today might be doing worse in school and in life than in previous generations.
Boys around the nation, as gauged by practically every benchmark, are falling behind. Over the past twenty years, their standardized test results have actually gone down and fewer boys register for higher university education. Yet, while this is occurring, the diagnosis of learning impairment has risen. The typical interpretation of academic success is at odds with male minds as well as natural developmental. And what makes the disaster much worse is that when boys grow up to be young men, they can access few economic opportunities and this forces them to live on the peripheral edge of social improvement.
Previously, the boy crisis was considered to be the result of an inadequate level of socialization, but the new view held by scientists is that male brain chemistry is at odds with an educational system that asks for quietness and conformity while learning linguistic, numerical, and spatial reasoning. Brain chemistry makes boys more inclined to learn through active and kinesthetic means rather than through passive learning. (A boy fetus produces testosterone during the first trimester and this hormone continues to bathe the brain during the rest of the gestation.)
The guest also talked about many other causative factors behind the boy crisis, including the loss of male role models, no clear rites of passage, and the boy code of honor which called for a loss of honesty about vulnerable feelings. The interview concluded with a discussion about some of the things parents and teachers can do to help boys through these serious challenges so that they can become successful, productive men.
Interview by Lon Woodbury
Drew Brennan, Head of School at The Academy at Trails, North Carolina, spoke to Lon Woodbury on L.A. Talk Radio regarding just how boys and men in America are in the center of a new sociological dilemma that has never been experienced before in the history of the United States.
Background
Dr. Brennan obtained his Ph.D. in Education from Oregon State University, an M.A. in Counseling Psychology from St. Mary's University, and an M.S. in Experiential Education from Minnesota State University at Mankato. He is currently serving on the Board of Directors for the Association for Experiential Education. Drew enjoys hiking in the woods of Western North Carolina with his spouse and 9-year-old son.
Just what Is The Boy Crisis?
Dr. Brennan started the radio interview with the declaration that the outlook is bleak for our boys and that they are in trouble. At that point, he proceeded to summarize a few of the reasons why boys today might be doing worse in school and in life than in previous generations.
Boys around the nation, as gauged by practically every benchmark, are falling behind. Over the past twenty years, their standardized test results have actually gone down and fewer boys register for higher university education. Yet, while this is occurring, the diagnosis of learning impairment has risen. The typical interpretation of academic success is at odds with male minds as well as natural developmental. And what makes the disaster much worse is that when boys grow up to be young men, they can access few economic opportunities and this forces them to live on the peripheral edge of social improvement.
Previously, the boy crisis was considered to be the result of an inadequate level of socialization, but the new view held by scientists is that male brain chemistry is at odds with an educational system that asks for quietness and conformity while learning linguistic, numerical, and spatial reasoning. Brain chemistry makes boys more inclined to learn through active and kinesthetic means rather than through passive learning. (A boy fetus produces testosterone during the first trimester and this hormone continues to bathe the brain during the rest of the gestation.)
The guest also talked about many other causative factors behind the boy crisis, including the loss of male role models, no clear rites of passage, and the boy code of honor which called for a loss of honesty about vulnerable feelings. The interview concluded with a discussion about some of the things parents and teachers can do to help boys through these serious challenges so that they can become successful, productive men.
About the Author:
Lon Woodbury, the founder of Struggling Teens, has a recorded version of the entire interview on his weekly L.A. Talk Radio show.
