Posted on 09/20/2021 7:37:37 AM PDT by SeekAndFind
In yet another indicator that they are not ok, men in America are abandoning higher education in record numbers. According to the Wall Street Journal, at the end of the 2020 academic year, the percentage of male college students dropped to just over 40 percent. Soon, if current trend lines continue, one expert predicts, for every man who earns a college degree, two women will earn a degree.
On one hand, this says as much about the state of higher education as it does young men. Simply put, the ROI of higher education is just not what it used to be. Not only are students bombarded by narrow, progressive ideologies with little real-world application, they often graduate with no marketable skill set, high levels of debt, and no compelling vision for how to spend their lives. It shouldn’t surprise anyone that there are 1.5 million fewer college students today than there were five years ago.
Still, for men, who represent 71 percent of those abandoning higher education, return on investment is extra low. Not only are they overpaying for college, but at many schools they can expect to be consistently berated for things they have no control over, like for their ethnicity, or for simply being men.
“No college wants to tackle the issue under the glare of gender politics,” says enrollment expert Jennifer Delahunty. “The conventional view on campuses is that men make more money [and] hold higher positions. Why should we give them a little shove from high school to college?” In other words, it’s politically incorrect to help men succeed.
All of this is set against an even larger backdrop: “perpetual adolescence.” While at other times and in other places, teenaged young men would be fighting battles or managing farms or embarking on grand adventures, today we punish them with low expectations. Teenagers, especially young men, are expected to care for nothing, have no job, and spend most of their time playing video games.
Even worse, adolescence now extends to young people, especially young men, in their 20s and 30s. Young men in their 20s and 30s are aimless: refusing to grow up, addicted to pornography, and spending their time and money in digital fantasy worlds. By excusing their so-called “Peter Pan Syndrome,” we’ve subjected them to a tyranny of low expectations.
Unsurprisingly, these low expectations don’t stop the worst elements of fallen masculinity; rather, they fuel them. As one fraternity president at the University of Vermont put it, “… a lot of guys are here for four years to drink beer, smoke weed, hang out and get a degree.”
Despite millions spent on training and awareness, college campuses are still haunted by the specter of sexual assault. Tragically, that makes sense in a world where all that’s left to sexual morality is a blurry line of consent. That will never be enough to temper the bad behavior of young men trapped in extended adolescence.
All of this points to a central problem. Having abandoned moral and creational norms, we’ve no idea what to do with human beings, especially men. Fallen masculinity has always been a dangerous thing. Men account for the vast majority of domestic abuse, rape and violent crime, not to mention historically aggressive behavior in war. When men give in to aggression and violence, they leave a trail of cultural devastation in their wake, particularly for women and children.
Margaret Mead observed that a central question any society has to answer is how to make a proper place for men. Of course, she thought their proper place was somewhere on the moon, but her basic observation is correct. Missing in our current cultural equation for men is purpose. Low expectations, combined with a dearth of purpose, make for a dangerous concoction.
To paraphrase T.S. Eliot, before we know what to do with something, we need to know what that something is for. We’ll never know what to do with men, especially young men, if we don’t know what men are for.
The answer is not to reject masculinity as inherently evil, as many tend to do, including Christians. Instead, the answer is to define masculinity from a Christian worldview. Embedded in the Creation story is a unique grounding for the dignity of both men and women. We also find definitions for their purpose as male and female.
In fact, Jesus pointed to God’s creational intent for creating humans as male and female when asked about male responsibility in marriage. In that answer and throughout His ministry, Jesus confronted men, even young men, with higher expectations: action instead of passivity, protection instead of abuse, faithfulness instead of abandonment.
Many men today get each of these exactly wrong, and culture enables it. Without a corrective, we can expect it to only get worse. Fortunately, we have just such a corrective. A Christian worldview gives us this corrective, and in Scripture, we have the portrayal of a man perfect in gentleness, humility, and strength: Jesus Christ.
Originally published at Break Point.
John Stonestreet serves as president of the Colson Center for Christian Worldview. He’s a sought-after author and speaker on areas of faith and culture, theology, worldview, education and apologetics.
Kasey Leander is a Fellow with the Oxford Centre for Christian Apologetics (OCCA). Prior to his time at OCCA, Kasey earned an undergraduate degree in history and PPE (Politics, Philosophy, and Economics) from Taylor University. While at Taylor, Kasey served in various ministry roles on campus and was active in student government. He has also worked briefly in politics, serving as an intern in the US Senate in Washington, DC.
I used to joke that all the girls I dated in college where “bisexual”.
When I asked to have sex with them, they said “Bye!”
There are a surprising number of young fellows who have their own businesses and are making good money. Maybe they are not as dumb as people think.
The 60-40 ratio of females to males has existed for a long time now. This is not news. It must be that colleges are now having a hard time meeting their enrollment goals. Not surprising that males are passing on college after years of being demonized as oppressors and sexual predators on campus. It’s a good time to be a cowboy though.
The 60-40 ratio of females to males has existed for a long time now. This is not news. It must be that colleges are now having a hard time meeting their enrollment goals. Not surprising that males are passing on college after years of being demonized as oppressors and sexual predators on campus. It’s a good time to be a cowboy though.
People want to be where they are treated fairly and with respect.
Colleges berate and insult young men—nobody knowingly volunteers for that kind of treatment.
True, the Women actually hold directly opposing views on the same subject and believe both to be truth. Who will they marry? They can’t possibly be expected to get a Degree and marry a welder, can they? It is another part of the Satanic division of humanity. Colors, politics, education, and religion. The sexes have opposing view in large part. Married women are more likely to be Conservative, single women are stark raving lunatics. College mis-educated males are as crazy as the mis-educated Sows who excel at learning nothing. So they marry each other and work for government.
The problem, imo, is that there are TOO MANY colleges/universities, and there is an irrational expectation that every person MUST go to college.
This is wasted time for far too many kids these days, especially when a LOT of the current college students couldn’t manage to graduate a 1920s HIGH SCHOOL curriculum.
Colleges and universities weren’t meant to be universal, and have been dumbed down to attempt to manage that.
Let the woman learn in silence with all subjection. But I suffer not a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man, but to be in silence. For Adam was first formed, then Eve. And Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived was in the transgression. Notwithstanding she shall be saved in childbearing, if they continue in faith and charity and holiness with sobriety.1 Tim 2:11-15.
God's way is always the best way.
Although we are in the last days of the current age, soon Jesus will be King in Jerusalem and for 1000 years, the world will be at peace, including wives surrendering to their husbands and husbands loving their wives. That will be a wonderful day.
Colleges have changed. They are no longer institutions of higher learning, but money pits of propaganda and hate.
My son tried, but after having to apologize for being a white male twice decided the Navy was a better choice. Now look at what they are doing to our military men.... Real MEN are finding it harder and harder to get a foothold in their future. At every turn they are experiencing hatred, bias and persecution.
The coursework is directed at empowering women (I don’t need it and I am one as is my daughter, thank you very much....NOT!!!), and sundry victim’s groups. Beyond sad.
Where will these women find men to marry? Well, they are being encouraged to marry each other so I guess...problem solved?
If you don’t see an AGENDA in all of this you are BLIND!
Exactly what I said too. Who will they marry? My son says the females he meets only see him as a wallet. Well, the wallet won’t be very big if they keep men down, now will it? He isn’t dating right now as a result and his opinion of women is very low. Can you blame him? I keep telling him there are good women out there. He is struggling. My heart breaks for him and there really are fewer “good” women in his age group. The numbers have been going down for years now. It just makes me so incredibly sad. I just want him to be happy.
It sounds like your son is very sharp.
One solution to the “wallet” problem is to date women who make more money than he does....
Cool. It’s been a week or two since the last clueless religious tradcon sneer at young men. I hope we can also read more soon about why young men are staying away from their churches in droves. But first, let’s fix that headline:
“College and the wising-up of American men”
Thanks. He is pretty smart. Hopefully, in a couple of years, when he gets out of the service, he will be able to find a quality woman. For “normal” kids (men and women), it seems to be quite a problem today.... Everything that we taught them seems to be wrong...work ethic ...morality ...perseverance ...integrity... My daughter has finally found someone. Hopefully, my son will too over the next few years. It just shouldn’t be this hard.
It might be smarter to spend less money learning a valuable skill in less time, something that everybody needs/wants sooner or later, and then immediately start working, making money and gaining valuable on-the-job experience.
And, because you have this skill, this needed ability to solve other people’s real world problem, you’ll always be needed and will almost always be able to find work and earn a living virtually anywhere you are
This is not always so with many 4 year degrees, that even with scholarships can cost a small fortune to then repay year after year long after the thrill is gone … with interest … and often with no guarantee of ever finding a job that’s related to your degree. Ouch.
It’s true that many, many jobs require a 4 year degree, but this can be acquired “along the way” if needed, while you’re working the job you have … and some companies will even repay your tuition and books! (To keep you working for them, because now you’re even more valuable … win-win.)
What does it take to “make it” and be successful in America and virtually anywhere else?
Learn to do something that everyone needs and/or wants and then get busy being the best you can be doing it.
The world will seek you and then pay you to help them, so be that guy.
My children, male and female, are allowed to stay at home as long as they are productive. This means a job or school. 2 oldest have chosen a job over college so far, 1 saving money at home working, 1 wants independence will be moving out and has a job.
I do not recommend college for almost anyone any longer. Trades and technical degrees are where it’s at. The super smart can get engineering degrees, science degrees, but pretty much any other college degree is fluff and crap. You need 4 years to teach you how to teach kids?! BS. You either know already or you don’t.
Generally, women will still be dumber than men.
Truth.
Men typically went into STEM majors/courses. We import STEM workers. Women hate STEM so there are fewer men in college.
One solution to the “wallet” problem is to date women who make more money than he does....
That seems like a solution but if the woman makes more then she wears the pants and calls the shots. What man wants to live under a woman’s thumb?
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