Why Aren't Boys Reading?

Boys don't like reading By Caitlin Muir

A recent op-ed piece by Thomas Spence in the Wall Street Journal addresses a growing problem in America - our boys aren't reading.

It isn't exactly news that boys aren't huge readers. The Center on Education Policy reports that there has been a large disparity (more than 10 points) between boys and girls in reading since 1992. As reading scores continue to rise across the country, girls are leading the way. In no state do boys outscore girls in reading.

I recently went to a bookstore with my eight-year old niece. We wanted to pick up a book for her and for her ten-year old brother. Her brother is in 4th grade - the same grade that the Center on Education Policy tracks for reading scores. There were plenty of books for her - the American Girl series, Olivia, and Romona the Pest. But when it came time to pick out a book for her brother, who actually does like to read, all we could find was Captain Underpants. I consider myself a cool aunt but there was no way that I was going to plunk down money so my nephew could read "Captain Underpants and the Wrath of the Wicked Wedgie Woman." He got a copy of "Mouse on a Motorcycle" instead.

There's a growing mass of teachers trying to encourage boys to read. But instead of trying to get them to read children's classics, boys are getting potty-humor. Move over Captain Nemo - Captain Underpants is in man in town. Teachers are more worried about getting boys to read than what they are reading. That's horrible logic and it's crippling our boys.

Spence writes that "Education was once understood as training for freedom. Not merely the transmission of information, education entailed the formation of manners and taste." He goes on to say that "One obvious problem with (this) philosophy of education is that it is more suited to producing a generation of barbarians and morons than to raising the sort of men who make good husbands, fathers and professionals. If you keep meeting a boy where he is, he doesn't go very far."

There's a little clue why boys aren't reading. They are spending more time in front of a screen than a page. Dr. Robert Weis, a psychology professor at Denison University, states that boys with video games at home spend more time playing them than reading, and their academic performance suffers substantially.

Spence's answer to the reading problem is: keep electronic media, especially video games and recreational Internet, under control. Then fill your shelves with good books. He also points out one last thing that is good news to many in the CollegePlus! community - there is no literacy gap between home-schooled boys and girls.

Parents, what do you do to encourage your boys to read? Share your tips below!

Caitlin Caitlin is one of those people who loves to read. She's currently on a memoir kick - and not the memoirs of Captain Underpants. Caitlin has her BA in Journalism. Want to connect with Caitlin? Send her an e-mail.

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1 comment so far - Leave a comment below

Our brother (15 years old) reads books by Henty, Ballentyne, Douglas Bond, R.C. Sproul Jr., Doug Phillips, etc.

Very interesting article!

— Ebenezer Forest Farm Monday, October 11, 2010 9:40 AM CDT

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