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| ABCs of Public
Education: The idea of same-sex schools is worthy of discussion by Roxanne Evans |
| Recently, Secretary of Education Rod Paige
touted the benefits of same-sex schools, particularly in early grades. The
benefits,however, if such programs are not allowed to be discriminatory, could extend far
beyond primary school. Most people know that schools are not always hospitable places for little boys. Little boys don’t always fit into the regimentation that make classrooms work like the clockwork instructors and administrators hope for. Little boys are loud, lively creatures who don’t always do well seated in a desk, listening to the same teacher for hours at a time. Because of that, little boys often find themselves either getting disciplined or getting drugged. Both courses of action often send boys down paths that may not lead to success. African- American boys are at particular risk. Some people over the years have made arguments that perhaps boys would †be best taught by those who can understand what being a little boy is all about: men. There is a smatering of research that suggests that boys are calmer in the absence of girls and that adult men have a calming influence on boys in the classroom. That is not to mean that girls are the problem. It merely means that boys are likely to act different in their presence. That should come as no surprise to anyone. The same holds true for females, of all ages. Although the Department of Education touts the benefits of single-sex school for boys, girls would derive as much benefit from such a plan. Study after study has shown that female students tend to defer to male students in class, particularly in math and science classes. That tendency would be removed if the males were, too. Although it makes parents uneasy to think about it, males and females begin to notice each other a lot earlier than we would like. With rappers such as the prepubescent Little Bow Wow and the rump-shaking videos of teenagers like Brittney Spears, its not hard to speculate that members of the opposite sex are becoming distracted by each other far too young. These kinds of distractions don’t aid the learning process. From an educational standpoint, there is nothing wrong with experimenting with different ways to deliver education that maximize students’ opportunities for learning. If boys learn better without girls, then there are some boys, particularly those considered at-risk, who should have that option. Likewise, that option should be available for female students. The challenge is to make sure there is no discrimination. No one should tolerate a “separate but equal” system based on gender.††††††††† |
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