NSBR: Choosing High Schools - CoEd or not?

Sue Setiadji

Sue Setiadji

New member
My eldest DD is off to High School next year and we are in the process of deciding where to send her. Whereever she goes there will be travel involved since we are at least 20km away from our nearest one.
The closest school (just a couple of train stations away) is an all girls High School. Other schools involve at least one bus trip and one train trip but are all Co-Educational.

Any thoughts/experiences on coeducational schools versus those that cater for just girls?
 
OMGosh, Sue, I would have DIED if I'd had to go to an all-girls school. ROFL

I might have learned more, but really, I learned plenty surrounded by boys. A whole class full of catty girls sounds terrible to me. How's your daughter feel about it?

I have no idea educationally if it works or not, but it just doesn't seem very fun to me. ;)
 
I would have to agree with Kellie. A school full of nothing but girls sounds like trouble! LOL!! I would def talk to your daughter about it and get her feelings on the subject too. Good luck with it!
 
LOL Kellie - I agree on the sounds like no fun bit! My DD is confused too. We know so many beautiful young ladies who are at or finished school at the local Girls HS as well as some of the dedicated teachers. Funding is directed toward the specific needs of girls so the education "seems" more focused.
When we went to both of the OPWN Nights my DD and I were far more impressed with the quality of presentations at the Girls HS. Before the open nights she couldnt imagine going to a Girls only school but after she said "I hate to admit it Mum but from the Open Nights the Girls school looked and felt heaps better"
There is a local Boys HS about 4 blocks away and they tend to do lots together.
 
BeccaBoo said:
I would have to agree with Kellie. A school full of nothing but girls sounds like trouble! LOL!! I would def talk to your daughter about it and get her feelings on the subject too. Good luck with it!
Click to expand...

We've been chatting heaps about it - I think we are as confused as each other!
 
I don't have a lot to add because I don't have any experience with all-girls schools, but Sue I just want to commend you on the maturity of your "little" girl!! :) I'd be so proud of my daughter for really thinking things through with me and considering all the options and what's best for her education. Kudos to both of you.....good luck, I'm sure you'll make the right decision!
 
Aww thanks T - thats half the fun of parenting - working things out together! I have told her that she can always change later if the choice doesnt pan out the way we thought it would. Not ideal but I think its adding too much pressure on a 12 yr old to make a decision for the next 6 yrs without an "out" clause.
 
I teach 5th grade and we recently went to a same gender format and the difference has been AMAZING!! The girls do SO much better without the boys in class. They are more focused and not worried about what the boys will think, they are more open and we are able to discuss so much more information and go more in depth.

As far as the boys, it has also been great! No girls to impress, they are also much more focused and with all of the boys, there is a healthy competition with grades that is awesome! I like the same gender format.

Of course this is only a few classes, they are younger (but still boy/girl crazy!) and they interact with each other during specials, lunch and recess...but in the classroom, it is amazing!!
 
Thanks for the input Sam - it seems that you have the best of both worlds. The mixed gender playtime looks after the socialising issues and the single gender classroom helps keep the focus where its needed and allows the teacher to focus on gender specific interests/strengths. I wish we had a high school like that around!
 
LOL I had to smile at this thread - I went to an all girls high school and will be sending my girls to the same ones when it is their time. I sooooo never had issues with finding boys and attended my fair share of dances/football games and proms. I really loved the casual feel of not having to be "on" to impress a guy and well actually there was not the cattiness described above or if there was I certainly wasn't exposed to it. Just my 2 cents....
 
Thanks for this Darla. Im finding that most girls who went to an all girls school rarely seem to regret it on reflection. Ive been through CoEd myself and often wonder if I would have done better at a school where I could focus on the actual education. There was plenty of cat-i-ness in my CoEd school - just most of it over boys!
 
Our schools are co-ed but in a nearby town, they have separated them and it seems to be working out well, at least for the boys that I know of. They have shown the test scores of the boys and they have improved since. My understanding is that there are many times that the boys and girls interact with each other but in the classroom. It sounds like your daughter is mature in that she's thinking her options through. Good luck in your decision.
 
My coworker/friend had both her daughters go to a girls school and her boys to a coed public school. Her girls did very well in school, but her boys struggled a bit - all had ADD. The only thing is that both girls have gotten into trouble with boys after they went off to college (one got preggos and the other dropped out to support her and her druggie boyfriend), but her boys have had much healthier relationships with girls. So I don't know, sounds like the education is more focused, but you lose something in the socialization aspect.
 
Can you do tours of the schools? I know around here & where I grew up they offered not just tours for parents & students but they had days where prospective students could spend a couple hours with a current student, visit a gym class, have lunch & go to another class, that sort of thing. It really helped you get a feel for the students

I went to both a co ed HS and an all girls HS for different years (co-ed private school, it was being remodeled & they sent us to the 2 other private schools (single sex) for the year it was out of service). The same sex school was different. It was more relaxed. The cliques transfered from our high school, but there didn't seem to be as much rigidity about who sits where at lunch among the regular students.
 
Thanks for your input Melanie, Leslie and Stacey. They are all very valid and interesting points to consider.
I like the idea of tours for High Schools. We do that here for Kindy but not really High School. The open nights included tours into every "faculty" with activities in each room to get an idea on what happens there and to involve the students visiting. The tours were done in groups and I did learn a lot about the schools from these sessions.
We still have a few more months before we need to decide so its great to get some additional things to think about. Ill share these thoughts to my dd in the morning. Not sure how to explain the earlier pregnancies - right now tho she cant fathom why anyone would purposely take drugs or alcohol! I think I should get her to say these things on tape ready for playback in 3 more years.
 
That is so great that you two are able to talk through it all! Communication between parents and kids is essential! I believe talking about it all and comparing the pros and cons will help lead you to the right decision for the two of you! Good luck with it!
 
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