Struggling School-Age Boys

Medicating our children, which pharmiceutical company is behind that one? We need to take some responsibility here! Life is not a Staples commerical, we can not just hit the "esay" button. Medicating is the "easy" button! I'm sorry but there is so much more to it than that. And you have hit the nail in the head!

As the parent of a girl who was also a stay-at-home dad I can say that maybe the problem stems not from lack of meds but an overwhelming focus on girls... we seem to think that girls self esteem is more important than anything else these days It is everywhere in the media. For years we have all seemed to focus on the messages aimed at girls but have ignored the fact that boys also see and interpret these messages...what exactly do people think young boys of an impressionable age do with these? It had become very clear that in order to boost girls' self esteem we have unwittingly eroded that of boys...In fact boys' perceptions of self are deemed to be built-in and not worth the trouble. Joy Behar of The View was once heard to say "they don't care"... well I care and so should everyone else. As a man who admires strong women, I also admire strong and confident men...we are sadly lacking in this department and it's not getting any better. It isn't any wonder why boys are feeling powerless and lost...real power does not come at the loss of anyone elses...Please consider what each of us can do to boost the worth of men and boys in todays social climate

Well, whatever has changed has changed for girls and boys then why are only boys struggling?? Girls seem to be able to adjust and thrive also.

There are way to many kids today diagnosed with whatever and then treated with medication. We need to quit reaching for the easy way out. Granted, there are legitamate situations for meds. Parents need to step up to the plate and be a parent at home, help kids along the way without doing it for them. I turned out okay and successful and didn't even learn my ABC's until the first grade! Kids need time to be kids every single day. Any 5 or 6 year old, boy or girl, needs down time to just play and be a kid. They will have to be a grown up soon enough, let them enjoy being a kid!

I truly believe there is a link between the extremely increased number of vaccinnations and behavioral issues. In the 80s kids got 10 vaccines before age 10 and now it is 36 by age 2. Why would we think that would not have some sort of long term effect. Why are they not studying that?

I taught special education for 5 years in the public school system, mostly to boys labeled with ADD or ADHD or various learning disabilities. I can tell you why educators recommend medication for children and mostly to boys. In a general education classroom where you have to teach to a test, it is very apparent who is learning and who isn't. Would you rather teachers not tell you your child is not progressing and not tell you there may be a way to help them along?
I am not a proponent for medication, but when you work with children who are not progressing and your hands are tied with how and what you can teach, where is the alternative?
The reality is most teachers are forced into a style of teaching they don't prefer or agree with by administrators, who are forced by their administration, who are in turn forced by their state funding budgets. Teachers are not stupid and we all know this state-mandated test-focused teaching isn't working to prepare children for the future. However, the rub is, if you don't teach in this way, you are eventually disciplined enough to conform or leave the classroom. Who wants to stay in a job where you consistently have to teach lessons that only prepare them to pass a test, can't take them outside to recess to learn how to socially interact, have principals griping about the student discipline problems, and have parents who refuse to teach their children basic manners? Not me.
Should parents be in an uproar about their child's education, you better believe it! The teachers already are.

Every since the government has allowed social workers and this beast called CPS to enter your home and counsel you there has been problems like this. Parents need to be able to spank their children when they misbehave especially boys because boys are masculine by nature and they need more rearing than girls, who ar emore submissive and more likely to follow suit. Plus they have put into these womens minds that they can raise kids alone. Of course they can, but that doesn't mean it is ideal for the child. Men need to step forward and father their sons and women need to get off their power/independent trips and we need to realize that our ignorance is hurting the next generation of great men!

I would also add that in the sixties and seventies this article would have been discusssing girls, seems the changes that were made to make girls "cope" better may have gone a little over board...schools try to put girls on an equal playing field whether they are or not, this leaves the boys feeling cheated and even broader makes them a bit cynical, they could cope if the game was played fair.....

I would like anyone getting into this long discussion, to read all comments posted here. It will open your eyes to many problems going on here. If your taking the time to focus on your own issues, you'll get an even better education learning that your not alone.

It is interesting that we are talking about adding mental health services so that our little emasculated boys can emote more often. As most parents know, boys and girls are different. They are naturally more agressive, inquisitive, and wild at heart. Boys need to be challenged, disciplined and given a clear idea what it means to be a man in our society. According to government schools and social engineers, boys and girls are exactly the same. It seems as if our boys are on an island with no supervision, behaving in ways that are shockingly savage and disturbing. Does Lord of the Flies ring a bell?

This is nothing new. I am 61 years old and can still remember my days in grade school filled with fidgeting and loathing. It looks like we are becoming aware of a needed (and long over due) refinement in the educational environment. Boys need physical exercise. It has been the norm to instruct students to accept a passive learning environment. This fits girls better than boys. It would be better to integrate physical activities with academics in a gender appropriate way. This would be through out the day, not just during physical education or extra curricular activities. Boys with boys, girls against girls in exercises of dexterity, time space coordination, strength, balance and stamina. Actively learning about your body with Yoga, dance, martial arts, running, and any sport that can be carried into later life (think golf, bowling, swimming etc.).

My grandson was just put on medication and I think that digirebel is right it is the quick fix. When he is with me I don't have a problem although his energy does exhaust me! His doctor was not supportive of giving us an order to change his diet at school even though we could prove that certain foods made him more irratic. The school was not supportive either so it became easier I think to just give in and give him medication. I worry that it is setting a dangerous precedent and reinforcing "better living through chemicals" which may carry through to his adulthood.
I think children can learn whatever you want them to learn but they must have down time as well. the public school system doesn't have the time or the money to really look into different learning styles and provide children what they need.

This article makes me so sad as it follows so many others that indicate teachers are teaching to the girls and to the boys who are absolutely proper and can sit still for hours at a time. Still, no one seems to be paying attention. My son is now in sixth grade and the studies have been saying this since he was in first, at least. I found that it was the teachers who just "couldn't be bothered" with a boy who was having trouble understanding the concept of a lesson or couldn't sit still. My mother was a teacher and she used to tell me about staying in at lunch, or after school, and helping the kids who needed help. This isn't done anymore. You are expected to harnass the huge financial responsibility of a private tutor, SCORE, Kuman or a similiar facility. In this economy, barely makiing ends meet, not everyone can afford these facilities. And why should we if we are paying taxes into the school system already?