Opinion
Reading & Literacy Opinion

Jack Jennings Lays It All Out

By Richard Whitmire — March 18, 2011 1 min read
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The president and CEO of the Center on Education Policy says it all here. If we don’t boost reading and writing skills of boys, we’re looking at serious economic consequences.

From the commentary:

.Females are graduating from high school at higher rates than males. Nationally, 72 percent of female students graduate from high school, compared with 65 percent of male students. • The gender gap in high school graduation rates is particularly large for students of color. Among African American youth, about 59 percent of girls and 48 percent of boys completed high school. Among Latino youth, about 58 percent of girls and 49 percent of boys graduated. By comparison, 79 percent of white females and 74 percent of white males completed high school. • Women are going on to college at higher rates than men. Between 1967 and 2000, the college enrollment rate of 18- to 24-year-old female high school graduates increased by about 20 percentage points, from 25.1 to 45.6 percent. But the comparable rate for men decreased from 44.7 to 40.9 percent, a drop of almost 4 points. • Females are graduating from college at higher rates than men. In 1970, men received a majority of all the bachelor's degrees awarded in all 50 states. By 2001, women were receiving a majority of the bachelor's degrees. In fact, women are earning a majority of the bachelor's degrees among every racial/ethnic group -- white, African American, Latino, Asian American, and American Indian.

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