[Jumper]

Its my understanding that as schools become less gender friendly to boys while tayloring the educational environment to meet the needs of girls specifically - that boys are increasingly being diagonasted and prescribed this drug.

It is my belief that young boys' needs would be better served without the PC discrimination, e.g., no cowboys & Indians (violence traits...), etc., and be allowed to be boys vs. dulling their senses and making them uncooperative wards of a school system which is more like community service and punishment to young men.

I have seen studies that indicate boys are prescribed this drug at an increased 60% level from 5-years ago (the statistics of which sex is prescribed this drug corallates directly with the gender preference towards education and females).

[Nonstatist]

as schools become less gender friendly to boys while tayloring the educational environment to meet the needs of girls specifically - that boys are increasingly being diagonasted and prescribed this drug

That is exactly correct. One need go no further than that. It's a travesty and "educataional proffesionals" know this and could care less. Still, we hear about all the supposed institutional blocks against women while 60% of college entrants , and the majority of med school and law school student are women.

I don't how you reform a system with such an extreme bias built in. Without administering Ritalin, their only solution for the problem of "boys" seems to be expulsion.

[FreedomFriend]

You should see how many women teachers get onto boys for running and rough housing on the playground, things that we were allowed to do in school.

[ward_of_the_state]

Jumper, I believe you are on to something here. Many little boys have a lot of energy, and they need to be taught self control and how to channel the energy effectively. What really frosts me is that all to often alot of parents just don't want to deal it with and go along with the Ritalin because they're lazy parents!

I remember when I worked for the KidCare program for the State of Illinois, one mother called up very angry because she hadn't gotten her medical card yet, and her son had not had his Ritalin all weekend and she was nuts. I had to bite my tongue to keep from giving her a dose of reality.

I've heard of other successful ways of treating ADHD, such has enrolling a child in a martial arts program, where they really learn discpline, self-control, and how to focus. I definately would try that first before I ever put my kid on drugs!