James Tooley
September 2002
Recently published in the U.S., a new book by the University of Newcastle's James Tooley is certain to stir up as much controversy here as it has across the sea. Though characterized by British critics as another "putting-women-in-their-place" tract aimed at returning the fair sex to the kitchen and nursery, the book is actually a thoughtful, reasoned look at whether current education policies benefit women in the U.K. and U.S. Tooley questions whether "gender equity" practices and relentless efforts to push women into traditionally male domains like math and science - prompted by Title IX, the Women's Education Equity Act, and their British equivalents - have actually helped women. Calling it "the Bridget Jones Syndrome," he points to the dissatisfaction of thirty-something career women like Miramax's fictional (big-screen) character who find themselves alone and unhappy despite professional success. Women who are pushed to be like men will ultimately be unfulfilled, Tooley suggests, because they have different innate preferences. Tooley builds his case on evolutionary psychology to explain cognitive and behavioral differences between men and women. To undo the damage he believes feminist education has wrought - devaluing domesticity and overvaluing work in the public domain - Tooley recommends doing away with gender education prohibitions and programs. He believes we should end our obsession with numerical equivalency and allow greater variation in how boys and girls are taught. Some readers will have coronaries. Others will find this book a refreshing counterpoint to the feminist-inspired message that nurturing a family is a second-rate choice and a waste of talent. Not every woman is a lonely Bridget Jones, to be sure, but there may be enough such to demand a close examination of gender practices in education. The book deserves attention even if, in the end, you disagree with it. For more information, see http://www.continuumbooks.com/book_details.cgi?bid=2620&ssid=P5JCDJWEKBCUED06A4F07S.
