One of America’s greatest current challenges is reversing the steep decline in the intellectual performance of many boys enrolled in public schools.  The growing dropout problem (The America’s Promise Alliance data) , the downward trend in standardized test scores, and the dramatic increase in violence leads one to believe that far too many of today’s boys have either lost interest or hope while others are simply out of control.   America has failed to positively assist young males to dealing with radical change during their most vulnerable years.  This book will identify many of the academic, physical, emotional, and psychological transitions boys must navigate during their formative years as well as suggesting new strategies to assist boys in negotiating these radically different stages in life. America’s public schools are undergoing wrenching, fundamental changes as we move further into the 21^st century.  How does one explain award winning athletic teams in the same school that houses chronically dangerous classrooms?   One thought is that male oral traditions and norms that have been typically handed down from one generation of men to the next have been irretrievably disrupted by the increasing trend of female dominated single parent families.  This book will examine the power of “Sports Metaphors” and outline how they can become a conduit to bridge the growing communications gap between adults and 21^st century males. 

This book offers research validated ideas regarding the positive interaction between parents, coaches, teachers and concerned adults when encountering young men who are continuously transitioning from one distinct phase of life to the next without a traditional male role model in their homes.