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Single-sex or co-ed

Whether your child attends a school with both boys and girls or a single-sex school.

Should we choose a single-sex or a co-ed school?

In short: Parents choose between 3 main approaches: Co-ed throughout; Single-sex for some years; Single-sex throughout. Evidence: evidence leans one way. Research or guidance points in a direction, but it's thin, small or correlational. Best settled: school age.

Evidence
Evidence leans one way
Best settled
School age
Part of
Learning & the wider world

Single-sex or co-ed: what are the options?

Parents usually land on one of these 3 approaches.

  1. 1. Co-ed throughout

    The child attends mixed schools all the way through.

  2. 2. Single-sex for some years

    The child attends a single-sex school for part of their schooling.

  3. 3. Single-sex throughout

    The child attends single-sex schools all the way through.

Single-sex or co-ed: what does the evidence say?

Evidence leans one way. Research or guidance points in a direction, but it's thin, small or correlational. (Leans to no difference)

No meaningful advantage across 184 studies

Sources

What else is worth knowing?

Some schools teach only girls or only boys. Research has not shown a clear academic advantage either way. The choice usually reflects family tradition or what is available.

Questions to ask each other

  • What do we think about girls and boys learning together?
  • What drew us to this view?
  • Would we change it at different ages?

More in School and academics

First published 2026-10-03. Last updated 2026-10-05. General information, not medical advice.