Effects Of Single-sex Schooling Research Articles

Causal Effects of Single-Sex Schools on Long-Term Outcomes: Evidence from Random High School Assignment in South Korea

Causal Effects of Single-Sex Schools on Long-Term Outcomes: Evidence from Random High School Assignment in South Korea

Effects of Single-Sex Schooling in the Final Years of High School: A Comparison of Analysis of Covariance and Propensity Score Matching

Typically, the effects of single-sex schooling are small at best, and tend to be statistically non-significant once pre-existing differences are taken into account. However, researchers often have had to rely on observational studies based on small non-representative samples and have not used more advanced propensity score methods to control the potentially confounding effects of covariates. Here, we apply optimal full matching to the large historical longitudinal dataset best suited to evaluating this issue in US high schools: the nationally representative High School and Beyond study. We compare the effects of single-sex education in the final 2 years of high school on Grade 12 and post-secondary outcomes using the subsample of students attending Catholic schools (N = 2379 students, 29 girls’ schools, 22 boys’ schools, 33 coeducational schools) focusing on achievement-related, motivational and social outcomes. We contrast conventional Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA) with optimal full matching based on the propensity score that provides a principled way of controlling for selection bias. Results from the two approaches converged: When background and Year 10 covariates were controlled, uncorrected apparent differences between the school types disappeared and the pattern of effects was very similar across the two methods. Overall, there was little evidence for positive effects of single-sex schooling for a broad set of outcomes in the final 2 years of high school and 2 years after graduation. We conclude with a discussion of the advantages of propensity score methods compared to ANCOVA.

The effects of single-sex compared with coeducational schooling on mathematics and science achievement: Data from Korea.

Some U.S. school districts are experimenting with single-sex schooling, hoping that it will yield better academic outcomes for students. Empirical research on the effects of single-sex schooling, however, has been equivocal, with various studies finding benefits, disadvantages, or no effect. Most of this research is marred because families generally choose whether the child attends a single-sex or coeducational school, so there are selection effects that create pre-existing differences between students in the different types of schools. The research reported here capitalized on the case of Korea, where students are randomly assigned to single-sex or coeducational schools. Using 2007 Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) data, we applied hierarchical linear modeling to account for the nesting of students within schools. Results for eighth graders indicated no differences between students in single-sex and coeducational schools in mathematics and science achievement. Results from the 2003 TIMSS data replicated the finding: students' mathematics and science achievement was unrelated to the gender composition of their school. These results call into question whether single-sex schooling has the academic advantages claimed by its proponents.

Causal Effects of Single-Sex Schools on College Entrance Exams and College Attendance: Random Assignment in Seoul High Schools - Comment

We re-examine the findings in Park, Behrman, and Choi (2012) regarding the causal effects of single-sex schooling on South Korean high school seniors’ performance in the college entrance examination and college attendance. The results with an extra year of data indicate that single-sex schools are more effective in improving test score than co-educational schools but not in raising four-year college attendance. We find no differences in academic outcomes of high school seniors between those in co-ed schools that use single-sex classrooms and those in co-ed schools that use co-ed classrooms. The effects of single-sex schooling are heterogeneous across school ownership types and gender, indicating some interaction effects of single-sex schooling with school and student characteristics. Thus, the positive effects of single-sex schooling on students’ academic outcomes are context-dependent.

Single-sex classes in a Queensland primary school: An evaluation of outcomes

AbstractAlthough numerous studies have considered the benefits of single-sex schooling for secondary students, the results have open been inconclusive or inconsistent. Very few studies have considered the effects of single-sex schooling at the primary level. This paper reports a trial of single-sex Year 7 classes at a Queensland primary school. Measures of academic achievement (number facts, spelling, reading, and mathematics) and teachers’ reports of children’s classroom involvement and motivation were obtained prior to the formation of classes and again at the end of the trial year. Results showed that boys in the single-sex class, who initially displayed lower academic results than all other groups, made significant gains in spelling, reading, and mathematics. There were significant differences in children’s emotional and behavioural engagement across the trial year, with girls in the mixed-sex class demonstrating reduced scores on these measures compared to children in the other classes.

Effects of single-sex schools: Response to Marsh.

We take issue with Marsh's (1989) reanalysis of «Effects of Single-Sex Secondary Schools on Student Achievement and Attitudes» (Lee & Bryk, 1986) on three counts

Effects of single-sex schools: Response to Marsh.

Effects of single-sex schools: Response to Marsh.