Single Sex Education Rough Draft

Joe Gray English 101
2/5/09 Rough Draft


Single sex schools are steadily declining in quantity especially in recent years. Parents are becoming less willing to pay extra or move into an area in order to send their child to a single sex institution. As more of the single sex schools close, more parents seem to be debating the issue of whether or not single sex schools are more productive than co-ed. While there are no solid statistics for either side of the argument there are some very good points to be made about the issue.
Some people believe that single sex education benefits children and should be available. Thomas Spielhofer from the National Foundation for Educational Research stated that single sex education leads to a more productive child as well as a raised interest in the subjects offered in school.
With the declining amount of single sex schools there are clearly many people against the concept. A good amount of parents of both boys and girls worry that if their children are not exposed to opposite genders at a young age they will not be able to successfully interact with them when they are grown. Another concern and disadvantage to single sex education is that the number of students is dwindling therefore the child’s social skills would not be as well developed in theory. Researcher Amy Saltzman said that boys especially would be at a disadvantage because of an overload of testosterone in their atmosphere with no sense of balance.
Some of the arguments have been addressed by both sides. Some would say if the children have trouble focusing because of another gender then it’s a maturity issue rather than a co-ed effecting intelligence issue. Also single sex schools have less students, which means more one on one time for each student resulting in better education, but if the two had the same quantity of children the education would likely be at a more similar level.
Overall there are compelling arguments for both sides. In the end it is the choice of the parents of where their children attend school. However the declining number of single sex schools is limiting the options of many families. The statistics still do not support either side because the class sizes and area of schooling is hard to even up.




SOURCES

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