Principals’ and Teachers’ Perceptions of Math Education in Single-sex versus Co-educational Schools in Beirut – Lebanon

Abstract

The purpose of thismixedstudy was to explore school principalsand teachers’ perceptions about (a) students’ performance in mathematics in single-sex versusco-educational schoolsin Lebanon,(b) instructional methods used according to student gender, and (c)the effect ofteachers’ gender onstudents’ behavior.Quantitativeand qualitative data were collectedto validatethe results found. The sample consistedofnine public school principals and seventeenteachers.Three instruments were used for data triangulation: an interview with principals,a surveycompleted by teachers, and a classroom observation grid;the surveywas piloted prior utilizing it and its analysispassed through an expert panel to secure itsvalidity and reliability.Results showed that students performance was not affected by the gender of the classes or schools as per the principals and teachers feedback; however, other factors such as classroom size, parental involvement, boys versus girls’concentration in class, parents’carelessness, and girls’socioand cultural economic backgroundwere of concern to the participants in the study . We also found that principals and teachers did notwrite different lesson plans based on gender in class; moreover, based on the principals’ interviews and classroom observations, female teachers were more tolerant than male teachers towards disruptive behavior.Recommendationsfor further studies were suggested as to investigate students’ perceptions towards mathematics in both types of schooling.