Why a Girls' School?

The Broad Picture
“All of us want our girls to thrive. We want them to live lives in which they feel competent, confident, and connected to others, and to the grand scheme of life. …as parents and teachers and other adults who care, we can cultivate opportunities for girls to experience themselves this way.” (Deak 2002)

This is exactly what girls’ schools provide to the young women we educate.

Stepping Outside the Comfort Zone
History has shown that males are more likely to take risks, even appropriate risks. It is through appropriate risk taking in a supportive environment that we are stretched and grow, learning to overcome fears and take part in new and different experiences.

A 2005 survey of young alumnae of single-sex schools done by the Goodman Research Group for NCGS found that:

85% of respondents were very or extremely satisfied with the way their school encouraged students to pursue new challenges

84% were very or extremely satisfied with their schools’ provision of leadership opportunities

82% were very or extremely satisfied with their schools’ methods for instilling self-confidence.

The Research & Experience
Research continues to show that girls learn better in a single-sex environment. A 2002 study by the National Foundation for Educational Research concluded that:
Girls’ schools help counter gender-stereotyping in subject choices
Girls in single-sex schools perform better than girls in co-ed schools, regardless of socio-economic and ability levels.

Additional research presented by Dr. Ken Rowe to The Second National Conference on Co-Education in 2000 suggests:
“…during these key adolescent years [ages 12-16], single-sex settings better accommodate the specific developmental needs of students.”

“When girls go to single-sex schools, they stop being the audience and become the players.” (Myra & David Sadker, American University)

Girls from single-sex schools carry this active participation into the following years of college and life. One former university professor, Robin Robertson, says girls’ school alumnae stand out in a crowd:

“As a college professor I could identify students from girls’ schools with a 90 percent accuracy rate on the first day of class. They were the young women whose hands shot up in the air, who were not afraid to defend their positions, and who assumed that I would be interested in their perspective.”

What the Stats Show...
A 2005 study conducted for The National Coalition of Girls’ Schools (NCGS) by the Goodman Research Group of Cambridge Massachusetts found the following from girls’ school graduates:

95% of recent girls’ school graduates said they were either very or extremely satisfied with their schools’ strong academic curriculum

93% said they were very or extremely satisfied with how their schools prepared them for college

93% reported they were very or extremely satisfied with the individualized attention they received

99% felt more or equally prepared to interact with faculty compared with their peers who attended co-ed schools

97% felt more or equally prepared for public speaking compared with their peers who attended co-ed schools

Another 2005 survey also found that 84% of the NCGS member school graduates surveyed felt they were better prepared for college writing assignments, comparing themselves to classmates who had attended co-ed schools.

Stuart Alumnae Speak
“Stuart is a place where impressionable young women can develop a sense of identity (both self-identity and identity within a community) by providing them with the academic & social skills needed so that they can enter the adult world with the knowledge and confidence to succeed in it.”

“Stuart gave me a chance to find out who I am through a small, safe and all-girl environment while also expecting me to take on leadership roles and the feeling that girls can do anything if they set their minds to it.”

“Going to an all-girls school gave me confidence and a firm belief that there is no reason I shouldn’t do whatever I am capable of doing. I also feel that it fostered warm, trusting, and supportive relationships among girls that is lacking in teenagers who attend co-ed high schools.”

“Stuart provides an opportunity for young women to find their own voice and to explore that voice in a supportive and non-judgmental way.”

References:
Deak, J., and T. Barker. 2002. Girls Will be Girls: Raising Confident and Courageous Daughters. New York: Hyperion.

The National Coalition of Girls’ Schools. 2006. What the Research Shows, Volume 2. Concord, Mass.: NCGS.