Parenting Matters In Achievement Of Boys, Girls
Last updated Thursday, September 11, 2008 9:33 PM CDT in News
By Rose Ann Pearce
THE MORNING NEWS
Parenting style impacts the achievement gap between boys and girls more than other factors, a family and development psychologist, said in Springdale on Thursday.
"Parenting trumps it all," said Jelani Mandara, an assistant professor of human development and social policy at Northwestern University in Evanston, Ill.
Children who receive authoritative parenting -- an equal mix of love and discipline -- are likely to do better in school and life, Mandara said. Children who have authoritative teachers will have students who are better motivated and who will perform better on achievement exams.
Mandara was joined by Sara Mead, a senior research fellow at the New America Foundation, for a public discussion on the education of boys as part of the University of Arkansas education reform department lecture series. About 30 parents and teachers attended the discussion at the Jones Center for Families.
The pair will also discuss their research findings on the achievement gap today with graduate students and faculty in the College of Education and Health Professions.
In a 2006 report report, titled "The Trust About Boys and Girls," Mead wrote scores from the National Assessment of Educational Progress do not show boys lagging behind girls in achievement.
Boys are scoring higher and achieving more than they ever have, she noted Thursday but girls have improved their performance faster, she said.
Nationally, a debate over the education of boys have given rise to concerns in some circles that boys, as they move from elementary school to high school and into college, are falling behind in achievement.
Her suggestion in the debate is "don't panic. We need to clarify what are we specifically talking about about struggling boys."
Boys who are struggling more with reading and math tend to reflect larger education and social problems and not gender problems.
"Schools that are effective in addressing those issues also tend toserve boys well," she said. Parents and teachers need to make sure boys are getting the same message about the importance of education as girls are getting.
From his research, Mandara said gender seems to impact a child's socialization, girls receiving better socialization from their parents. He defined socialization as the process of learning one's culture, what is expected and how to relate to others.
Parenting styles fall into four categories of authoritative; authoritarian, with heavy discipline and less warmth; permissive, too little discipline but an abundance of warmth; and neglectful, too little discipline and warmth.
There is a real need for more authoritative parenting and teaching interventions to close the gap between girls and boys, he said.
Today's discussion is free and open to the public, beginning at noon in room 343 of the Graduate Education Building. Lunch is provided but registration is required by visiting www.uark.edu/ua/der/lecture_series_08_09.html.
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masonstorm1958 wrote on Sep 12, 2008 8:57 PM: