Beyond the Great Divide: Coeducation or Single-Sex? Book

Coeducation or single-sex schooling? This is a fundamental question that many Australian parents have grappled with in their desire to achieve the best educational outcomes for their children ? both boys and girls ? mainly at secondary school, though sometimes at primary level as well. There are many opinions on either side of the debate, as well as straight-out myths and mistruths. In Beyond the Great Divide, author and educator Judith Gill addresses the ongoing debate head-on. She starts by giving a brief overview of schooling in Australia and its various school systems. Understanding the history is fundamental to knowing why things are now as they are. She then follows with an examination of the rationale for single-sex schooling, and leads readers through the evidence for and against the case for girls-only schooling. Gill then considers the recent push for reform to boys' education, and considers the argument for single-sex schools as a fitting response to boys' unmet needs. The book offers a unique combination of insights derived from history, sociology and educational psychology. Beyond the Great Divide will allow readers to recognise popular myths about gender and learning, and, most of all, never again see the question of gender in schools as a simple choice between two mutually exclusive extremes.Read More