Single-sex boom?

In the last three years, the number of public schools offering single-sex education has quadrupled to 90.

Leonard Sax, executive director of National Association for Single Sex Public Education, says two factors account for the boom. Districts know more about research regarding the benefits of single-sex education and a No Child Left Behind amendment legalized single-sex classrooms. Until NCLB passed, the U.S. prohibited single-sex classrooms in co-ed schools, Sax explains. Now, districts have a new option.

The San Antonio (Tex.) School District initiated single-sex classes in math, science, social studies and language arts in sixth- through eighth-grade at 12 middle schools in 2003, enabling teachers to tailor lessons to specific learning styles of both genders.

Proponents assert the single-sex approach benefits all students.

"Single-sex education may help minority males close the math and science gap by appealing to gender differences in learning styles," says Peggy Stark, executive director of Non-Traditional Campuses and Special Programs in San Antonio. For example, a confrontational approach works well with most boys. A direct challenge, such as "Prove it to me!", motivates boys to work harder. To nurture girls' interest in science, teachers are ancouraged to show them how science can be used to improve the world. For example, they can build filters to clean dirty water.

Single-sex education does have drawbacks. Tile regulations based on the NCLB amendment had not been published as of press time, creating a state of legal limbo as the federal government could investigate complaints of single-sex classrooms. San Antonio circumvents this problem by providing mixed gender alternatives to all classes offered in the single-sex format, Stark says.

Sax predicts single-sex education will boom when regulations are published, which was to take place last month.

"For every district that has [implemented single-sex education], there are 10 more that would like to do it," Sax says. Many interested districts have been reluctant to proceed without the new regulations, claims Sax.

Take Saginaw City (Mich.) School District, which plans to launch single-sex classrooms at three elementary schools in 2004-05. Professional development and curriculum need to be ironed out, but principals, teachers and parents are enthusiastic about the new option, says spokesman Mike Manley.

Professional development to educate teachers about gender differences in learning styles is critical for a successful single-sex program. "You don't have to have single-sex classrooms," Sax says, "but teachers do need to understand the innate hardwire differences between girls and boys."

www.singlesexschools.org