Home > Boys, Girls & Co-ed Schools
Boys' schools
Some boys' secondary schools start at age 11 (Year 7), but the traditional
boys' public schools start at 13. Many have associated prep schools from
age 8 (or pre-prep from 5); a few have small junior departments for boys
from 11-13. A number of boys' schools take girls into the sixth form and
an increasing number have subsequently become co-ed throughout. Many boys'
schools have sister schools with which they share activities - maybe joint
orchestra and dramatic productions, sometimes some joint sixth-form teaching.
In some cases, they have merged to form schools with single-sex teaching
up to 16 and a joint, mixed sixth form.
Girls' schools
Girls' secondary schools usually start at the age of 11 (remember this if
your daughter is at a prep school that goes on to 13). Many have their own
prep or junior schools, which may be co-ed. Some girls' schools have brother
schools with which they share musical and dramatic enterprises, some
sixth-form-teaching etc. Most girls' schools share some activities with local
boys' schools; a very few remain socially isolated.
There is some evidence, much quoted by heads of girls' schools, that girls
do better in the more protected environment of a single-sex school where,
for example, there is no gender-typing pressure to steer away from hard sciences.
Although the raw exam results seem to confirm this, Heads of co-ed schools
will argue that this is simplistic. The truth is that some girls flourish
in girls' schools and others do not.
Co-ed schools
Co-educational schools teach girls and boys together. The number of co-ed
schools is increasing as single-sex schools admit the opposite sex (often
first to the sixth form and later at 13 or 11), or merge with a brother/sister
school. Much of this is in response to market demand but some schools believe
there is no longer any justification for educating the sexes separately in
a world where they will work together.
Some heads opt for a specific male:female ratio, others let one evolve. In
schools that have always been co-ed, the ratio tends to be about 50:50. However
co-educational schools that were single-sex may continue to be dominated
by the original sex and its ethos. If you are looking at a school that has
recently become co-ed, you may like to check the following:
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the prospectus. If girls have not been fully integrated into a boys'
school's prospectus, they are unlikely to be integrated into the school (eg
schools with a strong house structure where girls board with staff).
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how many boys and girls are there in total; and how many in positions of
authority, eg prefects?
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how many men and women are in the staff common room?
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the house system - if the school has competitive houses, how has it
integrated co-education? Some have mixed houses or twinned single-sex houses;
others just have a girls' house alongside, say, seven boys' houses.
Co-ed schools often have a wider range of activities because they are less
affected by generalised beliefs such as boys don't sew and girls don't like
electronics. Conversely, some research (much quoted by Heads of girls' schools)
suggests that girls do better academically in girls' schools, particularly
in science. It will of course depend on the child and the way he or she develops
through adolescence to adulthood: some will prefer to spend the gawky teenage
years away from the opposite sex; others will flourish in the more combative
world of a co-ed school. If you are not sure, you can look for a compromise,
such as brother/sister schools where they are taught separately but join
for eg extra-curricular activities and some sixth-form teaching. Several
schools are now linked so that pupils are taught separately from 11 to 16
but with a co-educational sixth form.
Also try researching:
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