U N I T 4 Social Issues 2

Where Are
All the Boys?

Pre-Reading Questions

Think about the following questions.

1. What percentage of the students at your school are women?
2. Which majors do men usually choose?
Which majors do women choose?
3. What kinds of jobs do men do if they do not attend university?

Vocabulary Preview
Match each word or phrase with the correct definition.
1. dilemma a. registration in a class or school

2. decline b. to relate to a particular cause or source

3. enrollment c. to decrease; to go down

4. attribute d. a problem; difficulty

5. ensure e. to seek; to go after

6. pursue f. to guarantee
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Where Are All the Boys? Track 15

T
hese days, college lecture halls in the United States are being filled
more and more by female rather than male students. Women now
make up 55 percent of the college population---and that number
continues to rise. Within ten years, three million more women than men may be
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attending US colleges.
Thirty years ago, male students were the majority on college campuses in the
United States. Traditionally, men acted as the breadwinners of their families,
and college was seen as the path to career advancement and higher salaries. But
during the feminist movements of the 1970s, more women aspired to having
10
careers and enrolled in college to pursue degrees. By the mid-1980s, more women
than men were attending college. At the same time, there was an unexpected
decline in the number of males applying to college. Educators are still uncertain of
the cause of this decline, but it continues to affect enrollment numbers for men in
higher education. Researchers have suggested a number of theories to account for
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males’ seeming decline in interest in seeking college degrees.
According to the National Center for Education Statistics, males leave or are
kicked out of high school in higher numbers than females. And male students are
three times more likely to be placed in special education programs. Author
Christina Hoff Sommers attributes the drop in male enrollment to early stereotyping
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of boys as “aggressive” and “non-academic.” In her book, The War Against Boys,
Sommers writes that many boys don’t receive enough mentoring and
academic support to become straight-A students and therefore lose
interest in higher education.
Others believe the drop in male enrollment can be
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attributed to the growing number of men seeking jobs in
repair, construction, and technology. These are careers that

3
make up --- to comprise
7
breadwinner --- primary money maker
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seeming --- appearing to be true
17
kick out --- to throw out; to remove
18
special education --- education that is modified for slow
learners or those with special needs
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bachelor --- a four-year college degree
36
doctorate --- a five-to-seven-year graduate degree
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priority --- something that takes importance over other things
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lawsuit --- a legal action in court
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weight --- importance; likelihood of selection

often don’t require a four-year degree from a university but still

promise good salaries.
The effect of there being more women than men at
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colleges has created some noticeable changes. The higher
number of female students has already led to more diverse
classes and programs offered at universities, especially in the
field of Women’s Studies. And at graduation time, one may
notice a difference in what types of university degrees are
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awarded to men and women. While women earn a higher percentage of
bachelor’s and master’s degrees, men still earn a higher percentage of doctorate
degrees.
But fewer men on campus have not changed the male/female ratios in some
majors. There are still fewer women in fields such as math, engineering, science,
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and computers. Women’s advocacy groups like the American Association of
University Women are urging colleges to make this issue a priority, but the
focus for many schools still centers on recruiting more men. To increase male
enrollment, some schools have formed partnerships with male mentoring groups
to encourage younger students to aim for college. Other schools have modified
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their recruiting and admissions policies, sending out extra mailings to boys and
paying closer attention to male candidates.
However, public universities may face legal challenges from women about
these recruiting practices that favor males. Recently, the University of Georgia lost
a lawsuit filed by female students because of an affirmative action policy that
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favored males. As one female junior complained, “It’s not fair that a boy would get
extra weight (in the admissions index) over a girl, but it would be better if there
were more boys on campus.” This dilemma presents a challenge for colleges: How
can a school attempt to close the gender gap in ways that ensure that both men
and women have equal access to opportunities in universities?

Reading Time _______ minutes _______ seconds 598 words

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R eading Comprehension
A Mark each statement as either true (T) or false (F) according to the
reading.
1. ____ Women first outnumbered men on college campuses in the 1980s.
2. ____ Sommers wrote a book about boys in high school.
3. ____ Colleges are offering more courses that focus on women
and women’s issues.
4. ____ Men need to go to college to get a job with a good salary.

B Choose the best answer.

1. Which is NOT a reason suggested for the decline in the number of men in colleges?
a. Fewer males in society
b. Stereotyping against males in high school
c. Males entering jobs that don’t need high degrees
d. Males lack mentors in high school

2. Which is probably true about Sommers’s book?

a. It describes laws related to education.
b. It focuses on boys.
c. It looks at the progress girls have made.
d. It tells about her experience in school.

3. Which is true about males in high school?

a. They enjoy studying.
b. They cause less trouble than the females.
c. They get better marks than the females.
d. They get into more trouble than the females.

C For the next two questions, look for the answers in the passage and
write them on the lines provided.
1. What ways have schools tried to increase male enrollment?
______________________________________________________
______________________________________________________

2. Why have some universities had legal problems with their recruiting policies?
______________________________________________________
______________________________________________________
S ummary
Fill in the blanks in the table with the sentences below according to the
category they belong to. Use each sentence only once.

Low Enrollment of Male Students in University

Causes Effects

1. There is a higher number of males who leave or are kicked out of high school
compared to females.
2. Some researchers attribute the decline to discrimination against boys in high school.
3. The growing number of women has led to more diverse courses at university.
4. Other researchers believe that the drop in enrollment is because more men are
pursuing jobs with a high salary that don’t require a university degree.
5. University administrators have instituted policies that encourage more men to enroll.
6. Universities now face the dilemma of how to recruit more boys while at the same
time ensuring equal opportunity to girls at universities.

V ocabulary Extension
Here are six words that are related to the topic but are not in the reading.
Fill in each blank with the best word from the list. Use each word only
once.

dorm elective major semester transcript tuition

1. He took four required courses and one __________ last semester.

2. Her parents pushed her to __________ in medicine and become a doctor.
3. Many students work while in university to help cover the cost of their
__________.
4. She wanted to take a(n) __________ off from school to travel in Europe.
5. The company requested a copy of his final __________ proving he finished his
degree.
6. When I lived in the __________ on campus, I shared a room with another student.

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S upplemental Reading

TOEIC or Not TOEIC? Track 16

S
tudents all over the world want to attend university in America. When
students apply, universities need a reliable way to assess their English
skills. Most universities use a test called
TOEFL: Test of English as a Foreign Language.
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Businesses use a test called TOEIC: Test of English for
International Communication. Today, however, many
universities are also using TOEIC. This test measures
English listening, reading, writing, and speaking. But
is it a true indicator of English ability? Many people
0
10
do not think it is.
Students know they must get a high score on the
TOEIC to attend university or get a good job. They
often spend several years and lots of money studying
for it. Several students achieve very high TOEIC scores. When universities and
5
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employers see those scores, they think the applicants must have very good English
skills. As soon as the high scorers begin studying or working, however, it quickly
becomes apparent that they do not. They have learned how to pass English tests
but do not know how to use English in everyday life. This causes frustration for
both the English learners and the teachers or bosses who must work with them.
0
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In Korea, major companies have started to use a new test to measure
employees’ English, called the Oral Proficiency Interview Computer system, or OPlC.
They have not completely abandoned the TOEIC, however. Even though it may be
imperfect, the TOEIC remains the best path to success for English learners.

Discussion
Discuss the following questions.
1. Should all students be required to take English test preparation classes or
should it be the student and the parents’ choice? Why?
2. What are the advantages and disadvantages of English being the dominant
global language?