Students, parents like single-gender programs

By SEANNA ADCOX

Associated Press

COLUMBIA -- Students, parents and teachers believe single-sex classes increase students' confidence, class participation and success in school, according to the results of a survey released Thursday by the state Education Department.

State Education Superintendent Jim Rex said the "overwhelmingly positive" results show why the idea of single-gender education has spread so rapidly across the state over the past year, and that the state's push has been a good investment. South Carolina spent $145,000 last school year on expansion efforts, much of it on teacher training, according to the department.

"If you want to know why more schools are offering this option, the reason is right here in these survey responses," Rex said.

South Carolina has become a national leader in offering single-gender programs in public school. At least 250 schools statewide are expected to offer single-gender classes in the coming school year, up from 70 schools last fall. About 30 schools added such classes during the past year.

Advocates said that by separating girls and boys, lessons can be made more effective because children learn in classrooms tailored to their learning styles, and not distracted by the opposite sex. But Rex stressed the program is a choice only.

Standardized tests taken in the spring will be evaluated to see if separating genders improves achievement. But the survey shows the classes improve students' motivation, which goes a long way toward success, said David Chadwell, the state's single-gender coordinator, whose job includes training teachers. Hired last summer, he still holds the only such position in the nation.

The push for single-gender education in South Carolina is part of Rex's efforts to give parents more options within public schools. Other choices the agency is working to expand include Montessori programs and charter schools. More than 2,200 students, 181 parents and 178 teachers in 41 schools statewide took the online, and admittedly unscientific, survey in April.

Girls gave the program higher marks than boys, with between 65 percent and 75 percent saying the classes increased their confidence, independence and participation, compared to between 60 percent and 70 percent of boys; 75 percent of parents and 80 percent of teachers agreed the programs helped their students.