Gender stereotypes in education – will boys be boys?

We all know what they say–girls don’t like math and science, boys don’t like reading. A new article in the Wilmington News Journal says as much.

The article discusses how a school librarian Christy Payne and teacher Kristine Colazzo recently put on a “Boys and Books Conference” to promote reading among middle school boys. The conference featured reading sessions with male role models such as dads, football players, and costumed characters like Darth Vader (since “traditionally” it is mothers, not fathers and evil galactic rulers, who read to children), and aimed to encourage reading using non-traditional texts like graphic novels and non-fiction books about sports.

The best quote? “I have moms come to me and say, ‘He’s not reading. I can’t get his head out of Sports Illustrated,’ “Payne said. “But that is reading.”

Maybe we don’t have very much to worry about after all. Except for boys thinking that they have to like sports to be “normal”…