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##  K-12 Single-Sex Education: What Does the Research Say? ERIC Digest.          

Interest in single-sex education has been reinvigorated by the                  educational reform movement and by skepticism about whether the                 coeducational environment fosters equitable treatment of boys and               girls. However, the "for" or "against" stance that shapes popular               literature on single-sex education is misleading because assessments            of single-sex education's success or failure are contingent on (1)              stakeholders' goals; (2) indicators of success used; (3) historical             context; and (4) issues of selection bias, especially in the United             States, where single-sex schools are overwhelmingly private.                    Although research on the effects of K-12 single-sex education is                inconclusive in general, some common themes emerge in the research              literature. This Digest reviews that research with particular                   attention to effects on girls' attitudes and                                    achievement. ATTITUDINAL VARIABLESSELF-ESTEEM. Studies of the             effect of school type on girls' self-esteem suggest that the sources            of self-esteem for girls may differ in single-sex and coeducational             schools. Studies that have found higher self-esteem for girls in the            single-sex, as compared with the mixed-sex, environment have                    typically used multidimensional measures composed of subcategories              such as academic, athletic, and social esteem. These studies'                   findings suggest that levels of girls' esteem in these individual               subcategories-but not their general self-concept or global self-                esteem-may differ between single-sex and mixed-sex                              environments. 
For example, Cairns (1990) investigated self-esteem             and locus of control (an individual's sense of how environment                  hinders or facilitates her or his goals) for students in secondary              schools in Northern Ireland. He used a multidimensional measure                 of "self- esteem" made up of four subcategories--social, cognitive,             athletic, and general--and concluded that single-sex schools are                associated with benefits in self-esteem and locus of control,                   cautioning that his findings of higher esteem may be confined to                cognitive self-concept. In another study from Northern Ireland,                 Granleese and Joseph (1993) deployed a domain-specific self- concept            measure in their study of girls from one single-sex and one coed                secondary school. Girls at the single-sex school were less critical             of their own behavioral conduct than girls in the mixed school. This            lack of criticism was the single best predictor of global self-worth            in the all-girls' school. In the mixed-sex school, physical                     appearance was the single best predictor of degree of global                    self-worth. 
On the other hand, Brutsaert and Bracke (1994) found              little effect of school type in their study of sixth-grade girls and            boys in Belgian elementary schools. While girls and boys seemed                 unaffected by the gender organization of the school, boys were                  negatively affected by a preponderance of female teachers on staff,             which lowered boys' overall sense of well-being. Smith's (1996)                 10-year study of students' attitudes and achievement in one                     all-boys' and one all-girls' high school in Australia that had made             the transition to coeducation found that both girls' and boys'                  self-concept declined initially but after 5 years increased to a                level above that which was measured when the students were in                   single-sex classrooms. 
ATTITUDES TOWARD ACADEMIC SUBJECTS. Several            studies found that girls in single-sex schools may have stronger                preferences for subjects such as math and physics than their                    coeducated peers. Mallam (1993) found that students in all-girls'               Nigerian schools favored math more than girls in coed Nigerian                  public boarding schools, particularly when mathematics was taught by            female teachers. Finally, Colley et al. (1994) surveyed British                 students (ages 11-12 and 15-16 years) from single-sex girls' and                boys' schools and coeducational schools, asking them to rank their              school subject preferences. In the younger age group, girls from                single-sex schools showed stronger preferences than their coed peers            for stereotypical "masculine" subjects such as mathematics and                  science, and boys from single-sex schools showed stronger                       preferences for stereotypical "feminine" subjects such as music and             art. ACHIEVEMENT VARIABLESResearch findings are ambiguous                 concerning the effects of single-sex schools on girls' achievement.             For many studies that did find gaps favoring girls in single-sex                schools, once findings were adjusted for socioeconomic or ability               variables, these differences diminished. For example, Harker and                Nash (1997) used data gathered in a longitudinal study of more than             5,000 eighth- grade students in New Zealand and controlled for                  individual characteristics (such as socioeconomic status) and school            type. As with other studies, the researchers confirmed statistically            significant differences in favor of girls at single-sex schools. Yet            after applying controls for ability levels and for social and ethnic            backgrounds, differences disappeared. LePore and Warren (1997),                 using data from the National Educational Longitudinal Study of 1988,            found that boys in single-sex schools did not increase their test               scores more than boys in coeducational schools and that girls                   experienced no statistically significant positive effects of                    single-sex school enrollment. 
Studies that have found positive                achievement outcomes attributable to the single-sex environment have            all dealt with single-sex schools rather than classes. A study by               Riordan (1990) used longitudinal data to clarify the effects of                 single-sex education on different populations and curricular areas.             Riordan conducted separate analyses for students by sex and race on             academic and attitudinal outcomes. He discovered that among African             American and Hispanic American students attending Catholic secondary            schools, both males and females in single-sex schools scored higher             on standardized cognitive tests than their peers in mixed-sex                   schools. To explain the differences, Riordan applied a set of school            variables as controls. He argued that policies in single-sex schools            that emphasize the academic side of these variables explained                   virtually all of the test score differences between the two types of            schools. Both males and females in single-sex schools also gained on            attitudinal variables such as leadership behavior, but much less of             this difference was explained by school variables. 
Lee and                    Marks (1990) investigated the "sustained effects" of single-sex                 schools on attitudes, behaviors, and values. They discovered that               women who had attended single-sex schools had higher educational                aspirations and were more likely than their coed counterparts to                attend selective four-year colleges. However, after controls were               applied for attendance at a selective college, effects on young                 women's aspirations disappeared, leading the researchers to conclude            that single-sex education may be an indirect influence that                     facilitates entry into a select college in the first place. The                 study found that girls educated in single-sex schools continued to              hold less stereotypic views of gender roles into college. 
Lee and             Lockheed's (1990) study of 1,012 students in ninth-grade Nigerian               public schools measured mathematics achievement and stereotypic                 views of mathematics. Analyzing data drawn from the Second                      International Association for the Evaluation of Educational                     Achievement, Lee and Lockheed found no significant gender gap                   between mathematics scores of Nigerian boys and girls, once other               variables were taken into account. But girls in single-sex schools              outperformed other girls in mathematics, while boys in single-sex               schools did the reverse, after the study adjusted for substantial               differences in student background, school resources, and teacher                attitudes. As in other studies, girls in single-sex schools had a               less stereotypical view of math, while boys in single-sex schools               had magnified stereotypes of the subject. SUMMARYStudies of               attitudinal variables yielded some consistent findings, including               differences in specific domains of self- concept between girls in               single- and mixed-sex schools (but no overall differences), and                 findings that support the view that single-sex contexts foster less             stereotypical views of subjects. Studies also concur that students              perceive single-sex school environments to be more                              orderly. 
Studies finding positive achievement effects attributable            to school type tend to view their findings as specific to certain               contexts and group characteristics (including socioeconomic status).            Some studies recognize that some single-sex schools are "doing                  something different" that may be reproducible in the coeducational              context. These studies view policy and training interventions as                particularly valuable. 
Other studies have not claimed positive                achievement effects for single-sex programs. Although research finds            that girls view the single-sex classroom as more conducive to                   learning, research fails to confirm significant gain in girls' math             and science achievement in the single-sex classroom. 
Finally, the             research, while inconsistent in its assessments of whether                      single-sex education is "better" than coeducation for girls, does               reveal areas of consensus on specific indicators, which may serve as            starting points for further research into how single-sex schools                affect educational outcomes. 
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This Digest was adapted from:            Haag, Pamela. (1998). Single-sex education in grades K-12: What does            the research tell us? In American Association of University Women               Educational Foundation, Separated by sex: A critical look at                    single-sex education for girls. Washington, DC: Author. FOR MORE              INFORMATIONBrutsaert, H., & Bracke, P. (1994). Gender context of            the elementary school: Sex differences in affecting outcomes.                   EDUCATIONAL STUDIES, 20(1), 3-11. EJ 492 031. 
Cairns, E. (1990).              The relationship between adolescent perceived self-competence and               attendance at single-sex secondary school. BRITISH JOURNAL OF                   EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY, 60, 210. 
Colley, A., Comber, C., &                    Hargreaves, D. J. (1994). School subject preferences of pupils in               single-sex and co-educational secondary schools. EDUCATIONAL                    STUDIES, 20(3), 379-385. EJ 507 527. 
Granleese, J., & Joseph,                 S. (1993). Self-perception profile of adolescent girls at a                     single-sex and a mixed-sex school. JOURNAL OF GENETIC PSYCHOLOGY,               60, 210. 
Harker, R., & Nash, R. (1997, March). SCHOOL TYPE AND                EDUCATION OF GIRLS: CO-ED OR GIRLS ONLY? Paper presented at the                 annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association,                Chicago. ED 410 633. 
Leder, G. C., & Forgasz, H. J. (1994, April).            SINGLE-SEX MATHEMATICS CLASSES IN A CO-EDUCATIONAL SETTING: A CASE              STUDY. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American                    Educational Research Association, New Orleans. ED 372 946. 
Lee, V.            E., & Lockheed, M. M. (1990). The effects of single-sex schooling on            achievement and attitudes in Nigeria. COMPARATIVE EDUCATIONAL                   REVIEW, 34(2), 209-231. EJ 412 239. 
Lee, V. E., & Marks, H.                   M. (1990). Sustained effects of the single-sex secondary school                 experience on attitudes, behaviors, and sex differences. JOURNAL OF             EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY, 82(3), 588. 
LePore, P. C., & Warren, J.               R. (1997). A comparison of single-sex and coeducational Catholic                secondary schooling: Evidence from the National Educational                     Longitudinal Study of 1988. AMERICAN EDUCATIONAL RESEARCH JOURNAL,              34(3), 485-511. EJ 551 431. 
Mallam, W. A. (1993). Impact of                   school-type and sex of the teacher on female students' attitudes                toward mathematics in Nigerian secondary schools. EDUCATIONAL                   STUDIES IN MATHEMATICS, 24(2), 223-229. EJ 476 667. 
Riordan,                  C. (1990). Single gender schools: Outcomes for African and Hispanic             Americans. In RESEARCH IN THE SOCIOLOGY OF EDUCATION AND                        SOCIALIZATION (Vol. 18, pp. 177-205). Greenwich, CT: JAI                        Press. 
Smith, I. D. (1996, August). THE IMPACT OF COEDUCATIONAL               SCHOOLING ON STUDENT SELF-CONCEPT AND ACHIEVEMENT. Paper presented              at the biennial meeting of the International Society for the Study              of Behavioral Development, Quebec. ED 400 090. 
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All ERIC/EECE Digests are available free             in original printed form directly from the clearinghouse. For                   additional information on this topic, please contact ERIC/EECE                  directly at [email protected] or 1-800-583-4135.                             **Title:** K-12 Single-Sex Education: What Does the Research Say? ERIC Digest.          **Note:** Adapted from: Haag, Pamela. Single-Sex Education in Grades K-12:                What Does the Research Tell Us? In: Separated by Sex: A Critical                Look at Single-Sex Education for Girls. Washington, DC, American                Association of University Women Educational Foundation, 1998.                **Document Type:** Information Analyses---ERIC Information Analysis Products (IAPs) (071); Information Analyses---ERIC Digests (Selected) in Full Text (073); **Available From:** For full text: http://ericeece.org.                                          **Descriptors:**  Academic Achievement, Coeducation, Educational Assessment,                     Elementary Secondary Education, Females, Foreign Countries, Males,              Performance Factors, School Culture, Self Esteem,  Single Sex                   Schools,  Student Attitudes, Student Needs                                   **Identifiers:** ERIC Digests                                                                 
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