The role of coeducation versus single-sex schooling in the academic, socioemotional, interpersonal, and career development of adolescents is discussed, and arguments and research support for both types of schooling are reviewed. Separate-sex schooling seems to provide potential benefits for at least some students. (Author/SLD)

Many studies support the existence of a significant decline in students' academic self-concept from early to mid-adolescence. In comparison, the findings on gender effect are less conclusive. This study aimed to determine whether there is any grade or gender effect on adolescents' academic self-concept in the Singapore context. Specifically, the…

The gender agenda in many North American, Western European, and Australasian countries has undergone a "boy turn" in the past decade amid growing concerns about boys' apparent "underachievement" relative to girls. One aspect of this turn has been the resurrection of interest in single-sex classes in coeducational public state…

Argued to "raise boys' grades" and "boost boys' academic achievement", single-sex classes in coeducation schools is one strategy among a plethora aimed at raising standards. This paper explores the experiences of teachers in one coeducation post-primary school that sought to raise academic performance, particularly among boys,…

A 10-year study examined the relationship between type of school and student self-concept and academic achievement. The study was conducted at two coeducational high schools in Australia, one of which had been an all-girls' school and the other an all-boys' school. Subjects were approximately 1,300 students from grades 7 to 11 in the two schools.…

Evaluates attitudes towards and achievement in science of Form 3 students studying in single-sex and coeducational schools in Brunei. Results demonstrated significant differences in attitudes towards and achievement in science of male and female students in single-sex schools and students in coeducational schools. (Contains 46 references.)…

Using data from the High School and Beyond survey, compares junior and senior year performance and other variables in Catholic single sex, Catholic coed, and public schools. Finds Catholic school students are urged to take more academically demanding courses; this accounts for public/Catholic differences in achievement and university attendance.…

Educators have not been teaching to the learning style of boys, nor have they kept up with recent findings in brain research on the developmental differences between boys and girls. With all the education reform efforts about, with new accountability standards so high, school districts nationwide struggle to balance budgets and increase student…

This research investigated social and academic outcomes from single-sex classrooms in a Tasmanian coeducational government primary school. Interviews, observations and surveys formed the basis of the evidence. Teachers, parents and children reported positive benefits from the class organisation, but these differed according to gender. Staff…

Research shows that socioeconomic status matters more than gender in the classroom. American Association of University Women researchers found that small classes, small schools, nondiscriminatory teaching practices, and a focused academic curriculum enhance student achievement whether girls and boys are taught separately or together. A sidebar…

This study compares the effects of single-sex and coeducational secondary schooling. Results indicate that single-sex schools deliver specific advantages to their students, especially female students. Single-sex schools may facilitate adolescent academic development by providing an environment where social and academic concerns are separated.…

Since sex differences tend to disappear under identical systems of training with individual differences being more powerful than sex differences, whatever differences between the sexes in achievement and aptitude there may be do not warrant separating the sexes for instructional purposes. (JM)

English researchers compared the academic and social benefits of single sex and coeducational schools, examining test scores and interviewing 100 college students (balanced for sex and type of school) about their experiences and their ease of adjustment to higher education. Results indicated that segregating the sexes did not increase…

In New Zealand, single-sex public schools are held in greater esteem by the community. Because single-sex public schools are more popular than coeducational public schools, the single-sex schools in larger population areas have selective admission policies to screen the large number of applicants. This paper argues that single-sex schools end up…

This article is part of an informational kit for teachers published by the New Zealand Council for Educational Research. The focus of this article is on the advantages and disadvantages of co-educational and single-sex secondary schools as discussed in research efforts from England and New Zealand. (JLL)