Just 20% of students in single-sex schools prefer their current gender mix

According to a new report released by the Economic & Social Research Institute today, students, regardless of whether they are in ‘single-sex’ or mixed schools, overwhelmingly prefer coeducational settings. Less than 20% of students in single-sex schools said they preferred their school’s gender mix, compared to almost 90% in coeducational settings. The report focussed on the ‘voluntary sector’ in Irish education, which accounts for over 50% of Irish secondary schools – most of which are under the patronage of religious bodies.

This explains why Ireland has one of the highest proportions of single-sex schools in Europe. It’s second only to Malta in terms of the percentage of students attending all-boys or all-girls schools. When the students surveyed were asked if they would prefer mostly single-sex schools, or mostly coeducaitonal schooling nationwide, 61% responded that coed was preferable.

Despite the clear preferences among students for less single-sex education, the ESRI described the results as “a surprise”, highlighting particular surprise at the very small numbers of Irish school children in all-boys or all-girls schools who prefer gender segregation at their school.

However, the report did highlight that things are changing. Many schools in Ireland are becoming coeducational, and no new single-sex schools have opened in the past 26 years. The report also wasn’t entirely positive for coeducational schools, with some students in coeducational schools highlighting unequal opportunities for boys and girls who play sports, with boy’s sports teams in the school taking centre stage.

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