Are Single-sex Schools Better?

Deacon's Bench ^ | January 16, 2009 | Deacon Greg Kandra

[NYer]

That's the question a lot of parents and educators are asking -- and Our Sunday Visitor takes a closer look:

Dr. Leonard Sax didn't have a very supportive response when a patient in his private practice in Maryland told him that her son's academic performance improved when she placed him in an all-boys Catholic school.

"I told her that with all due respect, I regarded single-sex education as an antiquated relic," he told Our Sunday Visitor. "She told me, 'With all due respect, you have no idea what you are talking about."

Curious, he visited a similar school and was surprised to see that the boys in the third and fourth grades did not have chairs.

"I was told that when boys of that age sit down, their brains shut off," he said.

That was eight years ago. Since then, Sax, who holds a doctorate in psychology as well as a medical degree, founded and is the executive director of the National Association for Single Sex Public Education, based in Exton, Pa.

He has visited more than 270 schools in the United States and abroad, many in the Catholic schools system, and is the author of many scholarly papers and articles, plus two books, "Why Gender Matters: What Parents and Teachers Need to Know about the Emerging Science of Sex Differences"(Broadway, $14.95) and "Boys Adrift: The Five Factors Driving the Growing Epidemic of Unmotivated Boys and Underachieving Young Men" (Basic Books, $15.95). He has been interviewed on numerous national and international news programs and was featured in Time Magazine in 2005 and in the New York Times Magazine in 2008 -- first in a more positive article, and later when his work was criticized.

The issue of single-sex education is not without controversy, and Sax is quick to point out that NASSPE "does not assert that single-sex education is best."

"We assert that children come in all different shapes and sizes and lots of variations," he said. "Girls-only schools are best for some girls and boys-only schools are great for some boys, but not all, and every parent should have a choice."

You can check out the rest at the link.

[NYer]

Raise your hand if your attended a single-sex school.

[Badeye]

I had the great fortune to live down the street from one that only taught females.

Man, were they ready for ANYONE from the opposite sex to talk to, every single day!

[AnAmericanMother]

I attended a school that had a "Girl's School" and a "Boy's School".

There was a screen down the middle of the lunchroom, and the boys ate on one side and the girls on the other.

Most classes were single-sex, but they combined classes for some APs and the higher level language courses because otherwise there weren't enough students.

So I went to a single-sex school, except for AP Calculus and German V!

[DPMD]

Before answering the headline question, let’s get the really important stuff out of the way.

If I’m born to one gender, but think I actually have the “real” but opposite gender residing inside me, do I get to go the school for the outwardly opposite gender from me, without having to have surgery first? What if I just agree to conceal the outward me by wearing clothing of the opposite gender?

Suppose I attend a school for the gender to which I belong, but, for whatever reasons, I feel “uncomfortable” using the restroom for that gender. Do I get a restroom of my own? Would I have to dress any differently than all the other students in order to qualify for the special restroom?

What about the teacher-sex predators? Is it fair to separate them from zeroing in on the students from the gender of their preferred prey? Could we find a way to locate same sex schools in close proximity with schools of the opposite gender so that the teachers won’t have to work too hard to snag their sexual prey?

Just wondering.

[ReeseBN38416]

Who get to choose which sex goes to school?

[trisham]

I did, for two years.

[xsmommy]

i didn’t, but my oldest daughter attended an all girls Catholic HS, and my son is currently attending an all boys Catholic HS. it was absolutely the best thing for each of them.

[trisham]

When I was younger, I thought it was a bad idea. Now that I'm older, of course, I think it's a very good idea. :)

My experience was a good one, though.

[AnAmericanMother]

Private schools don't have to put up with that sort of nonsense.

They'd tell the little brat (and, more importantly, his/her/its parents), "Save the drama for your mama."

[JamesP81]

Boys and girls learn differently. I think that, ideally, you keep them separate during the elementary school years and then start integrating in middle and high school in order to teach socialization skills with the opposite sex.

[thefrankbaum]

Words are classified according to gender. People are classified according to sex.

[Malacoda]

My eldest daughter is seven (almost eight) and attends an all-girls Catholic school. It is absolutely the best environment for her, and she is thriving in a way I do not think she would in a public or co-ed school.

I am very disappointed that there are no single-sex schools (Catholic or otherwise) available for my soon-to-be-in-kindergarten son until he is in seventh grade.

I will say that I think girls should have at least two years of co-ed high school before going away to college, though. The freshmen who come in from single-sex schools tend to go hog-wild boy-crazy because they have no idea how to interact with young men in an educational setting.

[xsmommy]

they each chose their respective schools, but not because of the single sex nature of them. my son chose Gonzaga for it’s hockey program, which is the best in the DC area! and my daughter chose Visitation because they offered crew. it was always going to be a Catholic HS; the only question was diocesan mixed sex or independent single sex.

[NYer]

If I’m born to one gender, but think I actually have the “real” but opposite gender residing inside me, do I get to go the school for the outwardly opposite gender from me, without having to have surgery first? What if I just agree to conceal the outward me by wearing clothing of the opposite gender?

You'll have to ask Sister.

[trisham]

That’s great! Sounds like you have two wonderful kids. :)

[xsmommy]

I will say that I think girls should have at least two years of co-ed high school before going away to college, though. The freshmen who come in from single-sex schools tend to go hog-wild boy-crazy because they have no idea how to interact with young men in an educational setting.

the problem is with the girls not the single-sex nature of their HS; my daughter is a college sophomore at the U of Dallas, and had no problem making the transition from her single sex HS.

[trisham]

I like the idea of uniforms as well.

[geologist]

First ... let us do something about what the television programs bring into our homes.

Murder, mayhem, violence, sexual relations of all kinds, and jokes about it. Historical lies about our country. our religion. our system, our constitution, Praising Hollywood, and the stars as role models.

No wonder drugging and drinking, and flaunting of the laws are so rampant.

Not acceptable fare for young minds.

Where is the good, the kind, the just, the warrior for right. The patriotic, fighting for our system of government, the Godly way of viewing life? etc.,?

How many of us teach our children about life and its challenges? Reality? Truth? and how to know the difference.?

[xsmommy]

thanks, i actually have three wonderful kids : ) but the youngest is LD and there isn’t a Catholic school that can sufficiently accommodate her. she is in private secular middle school/HS. But will be receiving her Confirmation from Bishop Loverde in March, we just found out this week! the older two had to make do with auxiliary bishops presiding at their confirmations, but the youngest is getting the main deal : )