Have always considered myself opposed to single sex schools and didn't plan for either of mine to go to one (despite both husband and I attending single sex and surviving!) BUT at the end of the day it's just one of the many preferences that need prioritising when selecting a school (if you are privileged enough to even have a choice) We had some other considerations that became more important in the process and in fact some of the characteristics of a single sex environment actually made it more suitable for our child.
For mixed the obvious benefits are that it's more like real life, for boys/girls who don't have siblings of the opposite sex it helps general social skills, often means boys cover some of the more traditionally "girl" curriculum topics such as food tech and vice versa (not sure how much woodwork etc happens in girls schools?)
For single sex, proponents say less distractions of the opposite sex, certainly I can see benefits in areas such as Science/Maths of girls being in an environment where they can take initiative and put their hands up with confidence which we know doesn't always happen in co-ed. Girls schools are not without their challenges but do seem calmer. Boys and girls learn differently, a boys school like Tommys knows how to get the best out of boys e.g they used to have shorter lessons than some of the other schools (think this has changed recently?)
Just a few thoughts. I've learned in the last couple of years that as out children change and develop we.have to be willing to be flexible with our own thoughts and my list of preferences for my children has changed in terms of priorities and is different for each child!
For mixed the obvious benefits are that it's more like real life, for boys/girls who don't have siblings of the opposite sex it helps general social skills, often means boys cover some of the more traditionally "girl" curriculum topics such as food tech and vice versa (not sure how much woodwork etc happens in girls schools?)
For single sex, proponents say less distractions of the opposite sex, certainly I can see benefits in areas such as Science/Maths of girls being in an environment where they can take initiative and put their hands up with confidence which we know doesn't always happen in co-ed. Girls schools are not without their challenges but do seem calmer. Boys and girls learn differently, a boys school like Tommys knows how to get the best out of boys e.g they used to have shorter lessons than some of the other schools (think this has changed recently?)
Just a few thoughts. I've learned in the last couple of years that as out children change and develop we.have to be willing to be flexible with our own thoughts and my list of preferences for my children has changed in terms of priorities and is different for each child!
Statistics: Posted by Chachacha — Sat Apr 27, 2024 7:42 am