Military School Info

Can't decide what type of school will be best for your teenager? Many military schools and specialty schools are gender based, specifically for girls or boys. This article discusses the benefits of same sex schools and the reasons to choose boys' school vs co-ed schools.

If you are considering whether to choose a boys’ school as opposed to a coed school, you may be wondering what benefits going to a single-sex school could hold for a young man. Although research is ongoing, there are several different possible benefits that research has suggested may be related to attendance at an all boys’ school. Read on to learn more about possible advantages from choosing a boys’ school.

Child’s Preference

All the research and studies in the world do not way up against a child’s own inclination and preference. A child who prefers to be in a single gender educational setting may do better there simply because that’s his preference.

Specialized Offerings

Some all boys schools have offerings that might be valuable for a particular boy, and it would seem a shame to rule them out simply because they are single-gender environments. For example, a number of military academies are for boys only. These schools have a history and tradition of working well with a boys only population and have created an atmosphere and facilities that speak to the fact that there are only boys on the premises. Out of the 27 private military boarding schools for boys, for example, 15 - more than half - are boys only, while 12 are coed. Ruling out boys only schools would both rule out some establishments with a good reputation, as well as rule out some locations that might be closer to home.

Social Pressures Reduced

The age at which dating starts keeps getting younger, and when boys have girls on their minds, it can affect their classroom behavior and attention spans. Some people who advocate single-sex schools claim that behaviors related to dating can reduced for both boys and girls by placing them in single-sex classrooms. Such behaviors are said to include showing off, preening, and even just chatting up members of the opposite sex when studying should be on their minds.

Discipline Problems Diminished

There is some data to suggest that discipline referrals may be decreased in a single-sex school environment. It could be that this is related to the reduction of social pressures mentioned above, or for other reasons.

Learning Differences

Some researchers have found differences in the way boys and girls learn. Girls and boys have different patterns and rates of brain development. Not only do their brains process information differently, but these processes have different relationships to their emotions. Add to this that they have different sensitivities in hearing and respond differently to stress, and a single classroom situation is not necessarily able to accommodate these differences well or in the best way, according to some. Simply put, it’s too much of a stretch for one classroom to be able to meet those divergent needs and meet them well, some argue. Instead of differentiating instruction and learning environments in a single classroom a classroom geared to the boy-brain can be established. The benefits of a boy-centered environment may be even more potent for boys who are at-risk for any of a number of causes. And if this is, in fact, a more appropriate environment for some boys, that would explain findings that self-esteem and swell as self-confidence can be positive outcomes of single-gender classrooms.

Reducing Gender Stereotypes

When there aren’t any girls present in a boys’ classroom or boys present in a girls’ classroom, it seems that gender stereotypes may be reduced. It is reported by some researchers that boys have less negative response to the possibility of engaging in professions that - in the past - were more associated with women, such as education or nursing, as well as to subjects that are sometimes associated more with girls, such as art and music.

Sources for Article -

whygendermatters.com
singlesexschools.org
ericdigests.org
nasbe.org
womensenews.org
Single Sex Versus Coeducational Schooling: eric.ed.gov
boston.com
literacytrust.org.uk
aauw.org
winchesterthurston.org
ed.gov