Sec: Do girls achieve better exam results when segregated from boys?

Co-educational or single-sex education?

All-girls' schools may struggle to safeguard their admission figures against the lure of the increasing number of prestigious boys' schools beginning to admit female pupils.

In 2006 the Girls' Schools Association's survey seemed to show that girls are much more likely to pursue science in a single-sex environment. The overall impression given was that the best place to educate your daughter is at an all-girls' school.

In response, the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference, representing the leading co-educational and boys' schools, commissioned Professor Alan Smithers's Centre for Education and Employment Research (at Buckingham University) to examine the evidence for this, and the ensuingreport was unveiled at a co-education conference in June 2006.

Professor Smithers said that no one should be surprised that girls' schools get good results because girls are generally better at passing public exams on offer in this country. Whether they are intrinsically more intellectual or genetically more diligent, he does not know. Girls' School Association schools may be more selective in their intake than co-educational schools, but equally, they may have better teachers. His report stated that there was no conclusive evidence that girls' schools produced better results.
Comparisons were compounded by differences in the degree of selectivity on entry, the socio-economic status and ethnicity of pupils and the expertise of the teachers, it said.
The point was made that the association compared its privileged pupils with the average uptake of science by girls as a whole, including those in mixed-sex comprehensive schools

His review of research done worldwide into single-sex education found that few studies had taken pupil ability and background into account.
"Comparisons have been confounded by differences in, for example, socio-economic status, ethnicity and such school factors as leadership and teacher expertise. While there are some very good girls' schools and boys' schools, it does not look as though they are good because they are single-sex," he says.

It is a logical non sequitur to say: the school produces excellent results, the school is a girls' school, therefore girls' schools produce better results.
There are many reasons why parents choose single-sex schools, such as religion, culture or their own experiences, he says. Equally, there are parents who choose a school for its ethos, location or strength in a subject, regardless of whether it is mixed or single-sex.
What suits one child may not be right for another, even within the same family. Pupils flourish in the different environments that suit them.
Based on an article by Liz Lightfoot in The Daily Telegraph 21.9.06

Co-ed or single-sex schooling VB

achieve - gain
segregate - keep separate, sometimes treat differently
safeguard - protect
admission figures - number of people allowed to enter 
lure - attraction, appeal
prestigious - greatly respected / valued / admired
overall - general
commission - order or authorise the production of

unveiled - revealed
ensuing - adj - resultant
intrinsically - essentially, naturally
diligent - hardworking
intake - noun - number admitted
to compound - to make worse / harder
degree - extent, amount
uptake of science - number of students opting to study science
mixed-sex - co-educational
confounded - confused
socio-economic - adj - relating to social and economic factors
ethnicity - national or cultural background
non sequitur - Latin - it does not follow
ethos - attitudes, aspirations and spirit characteristic of a culture / group
regardless of - adverb - despite
flourish - do well