Secret Teacher: Are boys losing the battle of the sexes?
Debates about female language has led to the voices of men being completely sidelined. Now we have to deal with the damage society and the media has left behind.
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The stereotypes placed upon does affect our language, not just the girls but the boys too. Photograph: Aleutie/Shutterstock
Angelica King
Friday 23 January 2015 12.00 GMT
Almost 100 years ago, grammarian Otto Jespersen stated that male language was the “norm” and that anything that wasn't male language was deficient by default. However, a recent longitudinal study has been released suggesting that “girls do better in school than boys” and that the biggest gender divide can be seen in language. But to some of us this is not new information. Recent claims of a “boy crisis” within schools is now seen as inaccurate, as in reality this has been going on for over 100 years. So, is male language now being viewed as “deficient” within our schools? There is a suggestion that over time we have come recognise common female speech techniques, such as being cooperative with others during conversation, as being vital in order to succeed in education and that competitive language techniques, usually attributed to boys, may be considered obsolete.
Much better hook. Tone needs to be more engaging, less academic - read some more SMs.
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