is an Assistant Professor of Africana Studies at Cornell University, and is affiliated with the . Gosa says that the study, 鈥淔amily Disadvantage and the Gender Gap in Behavioral and Educational Outcomes鈥 that shows boys from disadvantaged backgrounds suffer more than girls from the same backgrounds is most important for its focus on how poor social conditions negatively impact a child鈥檚 future, regardless of gender.
Gosa says:
鈥淭he analysis is clear that social conditions, not biology, are to blame for large gaps in achievement. Likewise, the analysis confirms that crappy schools and poor neighborhoods contribute to the problems. However, the paper is also clear that the data does not tell us what aspects of 鈥榝amily disadvantage鈥 are responsible for any of the early achievement gaps, and the researchers caution that they don鈥檛 have any proof that any of these early gaps are the cause of gender gaps later on in life ... We should be asking why, as one of the richest countries in the world, we have decided to allow so many children and families to suffer.鈥
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