Single Gender Education

Post Reply New Topic

Any women or girls here have experience in a single gender educational setting? If so, how was your experience? Do you also have co-ed experience to compare it to? If so, how did your experiences compare? How do you think being Aspie or Autistic affected your experience?

I have been in single-gender groups before, but not in a specifically educational setting. If it was at school, it was only for a very brief time.

I am glad. I have never related well to other females, my whole life. I think about different things in a different way, have different interests, dress differently, etc. etc. Even in my own family, I have always connected more with my dad than with my mom or sister.

My whole life, my best friends have been guys and the few other females who are like me. If I was in an all-girl setting, my growing-up years would have been even tougher. The reason I had any friends at all growing up (especially in elementary school) was because I had a lot of opportunity to spend time with boys.

I've had a lot of opportunity as an adult to participate in women-only things like Bible studies and conferences and the like. If I go, I only go to learn something. I have no expectation of some kind of "connection" with other women there.

Was educated girls only till the age of 10. Got kicked out and got sent to co-ed.

Boys are easier, more in your face but less bitchy.
Girl arguments drag on and are emotional warfare, boys punch each other and get over it.
Boys like facts, girls prefer gossip.
I was happier at co-ed.
Had more freedom to be me although that did not mean I had more friends or fitted in better.

I'm generalizing but it's my experience. Not diagnosed but definitly not NT.
For what its worth...

If by "single gender" you mean "all girls", then I do not believe I would not have been very happy in such a setting as a child, as I generally had nothing in common with other girls and they were in a social league far too complex for me. Thankfully, I was either in co-ed classes or predominantly male classes.

I haven't experienced pre-tertiary single gender education, but in University the course I completed attracted female only students.
That experience was mostly OK, we had a shared educational interest, and everyone was aged 17+ so the dynamic was generally mature; but at times there was exclusion, covert bullying, rumors, gossip, bitchiness, disagreements etc.

Primary and post Primary was co-ed. What I took from the experience was that inclusive education in all its forms teaches an invisible curriculum. Boys and girls learned about each other and how to interact, grew up together, knew each other on a human every day level. There wasn't unknowns about the other sex and I think the balance lent itself to a social order. To generalise, both kept the other in check; at times overt female bitchiness was met with male gruffness and vice versa, taking the corners off each other so to speak. I had a mixture of male and female friends.
I believe I would have had a very negative experience in the single gender alternative.

I was in an all-girls gym class in grade 9. I liked it because girls tend to be quieter than boys. Plus, girls are usually friendlier to me and I feel more comfortable around them.