2008 Woodie Awards
Studies: Women rule, Men drool
Staff Editorial
Issue date: 11/14/05 Section: Opinions
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The old saying goes that it's a man's world. Well, that may be changing.
Traditionally, men have had the upper hand in the gender wars. In ancient times, men reigned supreme because they possessed the skills for success. Compared to women, men had the physical strength and stamina to hunt, fight in wars, and do the menial labor to construct massive buildings and cities.
As civilization developed in Egypt, Israel, and the modern-day Greece and Rome, men continued their reign of the world by taking control of all the political, economic, and social institutions. The men ruled while the women were generally left in charge of the family and the housework.
Things began to change in the 1960s when the women's movement in the U.S. was in full gear. Betty Friedan, for example, in her seminal work on feminism titled "The Feminist Mystique," exhorted women to break free from their "comfortable concentration camp." Women, by then, had started to leave their brooms and stoves and entered the workforce, demanding to be treated the same as men. Contrary to popular conservative belief at the time, the world did not end.
It has been almost 40 years since the women's liberation movement, and women have made gigantic strides in the modern world. However, according to many recent studies conducted by the Department of Education, it appears that men and women are still unequal. But this time, it's the men who are on the bottom, particularly in education.
For years now, studies all across the nation have backed this claim up. In the earliest days of elementary school, girls best their counterparts in all subjects: reading, writing, and social sciences. While the males still exceed in mathematics and science, the females are beginning to close the gap.
The growing gaps between boys and girls don't stop in high school, either. According to the Department of Education (DOE), in high school, girls get higher grades, sometimes by a quarter or more than boys.
Traditionally, men have had the upper hand in the gender wars. In ancient times, men reigned supreme because they possessed the skills for success. Compared to women, men had the physical strength and stamina to hunt, fight in wars, and do the menial labor to construct massive buildings and cities.
As civilization developed in Egypt, Israel, and the modern-day Greece and Rome, men continued their reign of the world by taking control of all the political, economic, and social institutions. The men ruled while the women were generally left in charge of the family and the housework.
Things began to change in the 1960s when the women's movement in the U.S. was in full gear. Betty Friedan, for example, in her seminal work on feminism titled "The Feminist Mystique," exhorted women to break free from their "comfortable concentration camp." Women, by then, had started to leave their brooms and stoves and entered the workforce, demanding to be treated the same as men. Contrary to popular conservative belief at the time, the world did not end.
It has been almost 40 years since the women's liberation movement, and women have made gigantic strides in the modern world. However, according to many recent studies conducted by the Department of Education, it appears that men and women are still unequal. But this time, it's the men who are on the bottom, particularly in education.
For years now, studies all across the nation have backed this claim up. In the earliest days of elementary school, girls best their counterparts in all subjects: reading, writing, and social sciences. While the males still exceed in mathematics and science, the females are beginning to close the gap.
The growing gaps between boys and girls don't stop in high school, either. According to the Department of Education (DOE), in high school, girls get higher grades, sometimes by a quarter or more than boys.
