Families Magazine - Brisbane Issue 44 Feb/Mar 2021

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Education

Single sex school or co-ed? Which is best for your child?

In Brisbane there are many fantastic schools, both state and private, and enrolling your child in the one that is the ‘right fit’ for them can be a balancing act of weighing up pros and cons and matching them to your child’s personality. If you are considering private education your options are greater as you are not restricted by catchment. One of the questions you might ask is, “are single sex schools better than co-ed?” Here we take a look at the advantages of single sex schools and co-educational schools to help you make that choice.

Benefits of an all-boys’ education While we acknowledge that not every child fits a stereotypical gender mould, whether by default of social and historical latency or by nature’s design, it is generally thought that boys and girls develop and learn differently.

Learning style

All-boy schools, particularly those that consciously adapt to current data driven research, have considerable experience in understanding the learning and social needs of boys. Many parents and educators will acknowledge that boys are more prone to fidgeting, pencil tapping, talking etc. Rather than seeing this noise and movement as a nuisance or distraction, educators at an all-boys school work to incorporate these behaviours into effective learning. Boys often like to be active, so a learning approach that involves lots of movement, hands-on or physical activity, and even a touch of competitive challenge can be more engaging. When it comes to communication, ‘show’ is often more effective than ‘tell’ for boys, and ‘do’ is even better. Teachers at an all-boys school understand this and tailor their lesson plans and activities accordingly, incorporating an active and memorable element to lessons to cement the learning. Boys may also be likely to take ‘risks’ such as accepting the female role in a play, presenting their findings in class, challenging themselves further in sport, and putting their hand up for leadership roles when fear of failing in front of the opposite sex is no longer an issue.

The gender bias

Society has conditioned us to think that some activities and roles have ‘gender’ and that boys should be less interested in craft, or choir or the arts for fear of appearing unmanly. Students at an all-

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boys school can enjoy a range of activities that would traditionally see an over-subscription of female participants without fear of social retribution. That’s not to say that there isn’t plenty to cater to a boy’s love of sport and physicality! Boys-only schools frequently become renowned for specialising in particular sports, focussing their budget, attention and coaching to excel in sports traditionally thought to be the tenet of men. You may hear one school described as a rugby school, while another would be considered a basketball school. If your son has a love or aptitude for a particular sport, this could be a factor in choosing a school for your child.

Your Local Families Magazine February / March 2021 www.familiesmagazine.com.au


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