Daiva

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This New York Times article discusses the recent switch American schools have made towards single-sex classrooms. The classes started at Public School 140 in an effort to fix grades and behavioral problems. There are now 95 single-sex public schools across the nation. There have been mixed results to the experiment. At the Eagle School in New York City, students in single-sex classrooms have exhibited improved test scores and better behavior, but at the Bronx's Eagle School, students in co-ed classes are doing much better than those in separated classrooms. Kim Gandy, president of the National Organization for Women, says that single-sex classrooms have induced gender stereotypes. However, many teachers like the new system and feel that they are able to connect better to their students.

Why have the new school systems shown different results in different areas? How do single-sex classrooms provoke gender stereotypes? Why is there such a difference between the environments in boys and girls classrooms? What is your opinion on single-sex classrooms? Are they helpful or hurtful to children?