Research
our schools work for students
Women Graduates of Single-Sex and Coeducational High Schools: Differences in their Characteristics and the Transition to College
Dr. Linda Sax, UCLA, March 2009
What do Nancy Pelosi, Sally Ride, Melinda Gates, Barbara Mikulski, Stephanie Rawlings-Blake and Madeline Albright have in common? They all attended girls’ schools. And according to a new landmark research study conducted by Dr. Linda Sax at UCLA’s Graduate School of Education & Information Studies, there are significant advantages to being a girls’ school graduate. The UCLA report, supported by the National Coalition of Girls’ Schools (NCGS), compares female graduates of single-sex high schools with their counterparts from coeducational independent, parochial, and public schools. Results reported by NCGS concluded that “girls’ school graduates consistently assess their abilities, self-confidence, engagement and ambition as either above average or in the top 10 percent. Compared to their coed peers, they have more confidence in mathematics and computer abilities and study longer hours. They are more likely to pursue careers in engineering, engage in political discussions, keep current with political affairs, and see college as a stepping stone to graduate school.”
Early Implementation of Single-Sex Public Schools: Perceptions and Characteristics
RMC Research Corporation, 2008
For most of our nation's history, coeducation has been the norm in our public elementary and secondary schools. In recent years, however, interest in public single-sex education has increased substantially. The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 authorized school districts to use local or innovative program funds to offer single-sex schools and classrooms consistent with applicable laws. Subsequently, the U.S. Department of Education published amendments to the Title IX regulations in October 2006 that would provide school districts additional flexibility to implement single-sex programs. In anticipation of an increase in the number of public single-sex schools, the U.S. Department of Education contracted with RMC Research Corporation to conduct a descriptive study of existing single-sex public schools.
Single-Sex versus Coeducational Schooling: A Systematic Review
American Institutes of Research, 2005
Single-sex education refers most generally to education at the elementary, secondary, or postsecondary level in which males or females attend school exclusively with members of their own sex. This report deals primarily with single-sex education at the elementary and secondary levels. Research in the United States on the question of whether public single-sex education might be beneficial to males, females or a subset of either group (particularly disadvantaged youths) has been limited. However, because there has been a resurgence of single-sex schools in the public sector, it was deemed appropriate to conduct a systematic review of single-sex education research.
Is Single-Gender Schooling Viable in the Public Sector: Lessons from California's Pilot Program
Amanda Datnow and Lee Hubbard, 2001
Self Discipline Gives Girls the Edge: Gender in Self Discipline, Grades, and Achievement Test Scores
Angela Lee Duckworth and Martin E.P. Seligman
Sex Difference in Math Performance: The Role of Children's Approach to School Work
Gwen Kenney-Benson, Eva Pomerantz, Allison Ryan, Helen Patrick
The Why Chromosome
Thomas Dee
Learning Separately
Peter Meyer
Books and Articles published by Cornelius Riordan, Professor of Sociology, Providence College:
Girls and Boys in School: Together or Separate. 1990. New York: Teachers College Press, Columbia University, 1990.
"The Effects of Sex-Grouped Schooling on Achievement: The Role of National Context." 1995. Comparative Education Review, 39: 468-482. (with D. Baker and M. Schaub).
"Single-Gender Schools: Outcomes for African and Hispanic Americans." 1994. in Aaron M. Pallas (ed.) Research in Sociology of Education and Socialization. 10: 177-206.