University of Wisconsin-Madison psychology professor Janet Hyde published a study challenging belief of the benefits of single-sex schooling Monday, according to a university press release.
Hyde found little evidence that learning in single-sex classrooms yields more educational or social benefits than coed schooling, according to the statement.
Hyde’s research asserted the influence of never-before-considered factors on student success. Her work takes into account familial background and financial status by analyzing results from 57 selected studies involving elementary and high school students in different nations, according to the release.
The weaknesses of single-sex schooling—both social and financial—were also apparent in Hyde’s research. She concluded the system is costly and perpetuates gender and racial stereotypes, according to the release.
On the whole, the research established a coed learning environment as more representative of most students’ future realities, though results regarding potential marginal benefits for minority boys were inconclusive.
“The adult world is an integrated world, in the workplace and in the family,” Hyde said in the release. “The best thing we can do is provide that environment for children in school as we prepare them for adulthood."
The release referred to Hyde’s study as the “largest and most thorough effort” in the field to date.
Erin Pahlke, former postdoctoral fellow at UW-Madison and current Whitman College professor, and psychology grad student Carlie Allison cowrote the study with Hyde, according to the release.
