One of the few areas in which the government is doing some intelligent things – from a gender perspective – is education. The gender balance in the teaching profession is a national scandal, as has been the decline in academic standards over many years, albeit hidden by another national scandal over the past 30 years, grade inflation (‘All shall have prizes’).
Virtually all primary school teachers, and over 80% of secondary school teachers, are women. For every three women registered as unemployed, four men are. We know unemployment is a bigger driver of suicide among men than among women, contributing to the male suicide rate being three times higher than the female suicide rate. And there’s a particular problem with ex-Forces people struggling with life after leaving the Forces, often ending up homeless, and in time committing suicide.
So I was delighted to read the following story on the BBC website today:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-22798200
A rare piece of common sense from our woefully anti-male and pro-feminist government.