Single-sex schools could disappear from Australia in the next 20 years, new research suggests.

The Australian Council for Educational Research (Acer) has released a new study which re-enters the debate over whether single-sex or co-educational schools lead to better outcomes.

Comparing Naplan results for boys’, girls’ and mixed schools from years 3, 5 and 7, the study found that students in co-educational schools learn at the same speed or even faster than their counterparts.

While students in single-sex schools recorded better results in reading and numeracy testing, the study, by Acer research fellow Katherine Dix, found “no value add-on” in students’ education.

Co-education students increased at the same rate in numeracy as their single-sex peers and even faster in reading.

“In terms of the compounding influence of being in a single-sex school over time, there appears to be no value add in numeracy achievement and even a decline in reading achievement over time in single-sex schools compared to co-educational schools,” Dix found.

The benefits or otherwise of single-sex schools has long been the subject of debate among parents and educators.

The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development has previously found that while single-sex schools achieve better outcomes, those results are mainly due to socioeconomic factors.

Conversely, the Alliance of Girls’ Schools Australasia points to a 2016 study by Chris Ryan from the University of Melbourne into boys’ and girls’ attitudes towards mathematics and science. The study found girls in single-sex schools have “stronger attitudes towards mathematics than science compared to boys, unlike girls in co-educational schools”.

But Dix’s research found the debate could be “moot” because the proportion of single-sex schools has declined so rapidly they could cease to exist by 2035.



She points to Australian Bureau of Statistics data which shows the proportion of students from independent schools attending single-sex schools fell from 31% in 1985 to 24% in 1995.

“By 2015, this proportion decreased further to 12% of students, based on analysis of 2015 My Schools data,” she wrote. “If this trend continues, there will be no single-sex independent schools in Australia by the year 2035.”

But Loren Bridge, the chief executive of the Alliance of Girls’ Schools Australasia, said that was down to the fact state governments were no longer opening single-sex schools.

“Governments are not responding to research, which tells you kids are doing way better in single-sex schools,” she said.

“Yes there has been a decline, for economic reasons – single-sex schools are really only being provided by the Catholic and independent sector and even those sectors are not opening new schools because of economic reasons – it comes down to cost.”



Bridge said the Acer study, which accounted for socioeconomic status, reaffirmed that students achieved better results in single-sex schools.

“It’s also well evidenced that girls’ schools provide a better learning environment for girls. Free from gender stereotypes girls are more likely to study Stem [science, technology, engineering and mathematics] subjects and participate in sport, are more confident and assertive and have significantly higher self-esteem,” she said.

The Acer research was based on MySchool data from 55 Australian girls’ schools, 33 boys’ schools and 2909 co-ed schools.

It found that girls’ schools outperformed both boys’ and co-educational schools in reading, while boys were a full year year ahead in numeracy than co-educational schools and one term ahead of girls.

However the gap in ability shrank as students progressed through school, which Dix said “suggests that the value add over time that is experienced in co-educational schools is not being realised in single-sex schools”.