Harvard President Larry Summers has apologized for his controversial statements about the relative lack of women in math and science. I critiqued the outrage here. Preposterous Universe disagrees and has a good round-up of other commentary here. One interesting aspect of the controversy is that the lack of a written transcript of Summers remarks have left them open to a variety of interpretations. That’ll teach him not to speak off the cuff!
Of the comments I’ve read and received, I also found the following to be particularly interesting:
I took a heavy math load at Smith and it was all taught in a “female” way – the school took the position that women
learn and process differently and thus should be taught differently. Their position was that women have an approach and talent distinct from men and the “male” approach to teaching has shut women out of these fields. I don’t know if I buy it, but I do know that I learned
much more in Smith classes than I ever had before.I don’t necessarily have a problem with the gist of what Summers is saying – the question is whether he thinks women cannot be mathematicians/engineers, or if they approach these subjects differently, and what the data actually proves. . . .
Another thing – the woman who said she felt “shallow of breath” – seems very much like a victorian fainting spell. I question whether that reaction is good for women, either. Women before us faught hard to be taken seriously. Don’t let one comment knock you down. That
shows no strength at all.
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