Coed or Single-Sex School? Study Shows no Difference in Academic Performance between Two

Though some parents may think it best to send their children to a same-sex school in order to eliminate any distractions that come with the opposite sex, a recent study shows that there may not be much-if any-truth to this idea.

Based on the analysis of 184 studies from more than 1.6 million students around the world, researchers found that single-sex education does not provide better education for young men or women any better than coed schools.

"Proponents of single-sex schools argue that separating boys and girls increases students' achievement and academic interest," researcher Janet Shibley Hyde, PhD, of University of Wisconsin-Madison said, via a press release. "Our comprehensive analysis of the data shows that these advantages are trivial and, in many cases, nonexistent."

Though previous studies have shown some benefits to same-sex schools, particularly regarding academic performance, these latest findings reveal no significant advantage to attending same-sex over coed schools.

This study in particular involved 1,663,662 participants in 21 countries that examined the students performance and attitudes in math, science, attitudes about school, aggression, victimization, body image, gender stereotyping, etc. And the findings revealed no significant evidence regarding differences between boys and girls coed or single-sex classes.

"The theoretical approach termed 'girl power' argues that girls lag behind boys in some subjects in coed classrooms," co-author Erin Pahlke, PhD, of Whitman College in Walla Walla, Washington said, via the release. "This is not supported by our analysis and, moreover, girls' educational aspirations were not higher in single-sex schools."

More information regarding the study can be found via the journal Psychological Bulletin.