My last post, an excerpt from the Viva Editions book that I co-authored with my educator/therapist sister, Jump-Starting Boys (http://www.amazon.ca/Jump-Starting-Boys-Reluctant-Learner-Success-ebook/dp/B00BAHA0Y8/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1432838986&sr=1-1&keywords=jump-starting+boys), was titled “Tackling Chronic Underachievement.” I’m flattered that it prompted a reply from a longtime Canadian educator who has self-published a book (Rescuing our Underachieving Sons) on the same topic: Dr. James Brown.
While I’m pleased that the subject is being aired and discussed by lots of people from lots of different angles, I find the following comment to me from Dr. Brown too negative: “Parents really do not stand much of a chance; they are usually find themselves serving as the scapegoats for what is being done to their sons.”
Au contraire! Parents can and must make themselves aware of the problems that add up to kids (esp. boys) underachieving, and as our book emphasizes, there is much they can and must do, not only as role models at home but as advocates in school and the community.
In any case, anyone wanting to hear Dr. Brown weighing in on the topic can check out this YouTube site:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iS-QwfwJAhQ
It has some scary revelations about his own experiences in education.
