Tyrone N. Butts
APE Reporter
16
School finds success in separating sexes Principal says test scores are up and discipline problems down
Principal Aaron Guyton said some students were upset when they found out that boys and girls would be placed in separate classes at Mobile County Training middle school.
But with test scores up and discipline problems down, Guyton is making no apologies now.
While some students say they miss being able to flirt and talk to members of the opposite sex as often, many said they feel more comfortable in class now. They're asking more questions during class discussions and their grades have improved, teachers said.
"I like it. It makes our learning environment more product
ive," said 14-year-old Cornelius Davis, "but on the other hand, I like girls in my class.
"
The Plateau school, which has been one of the lowest performing campuses in the county, is one of two local schools experimenting with all-boy and all-girl classes. Adams Middle School in Saraland is the other.
Both schools started with a handful of gender-separate classes last year. They expanded this year to include all seventh- and eighth-grade classes at Mobile County Training School and most sixth grade classes at Adams.
At Mobile County Training School, eighth-grade Stanford Achievement Test math scores went up last year from the 19th percentile -- meaning students performed better than only 19 percent of pupils nationwide -- to the 40th percentile, according to the State Department of Education.
"Initially it was hard. The boys complained that they didn't have any females in their classes," said Guyton, who, in his second year as principal
at Mobile County Training, made separating the classes one of his first major changes at the school.
"I didn't get any compla
ints from the girls," he added.
Mobile County Training is one of five so-called transformation schools recently restaffed in an effort to improve student achievement.
Adams Principal John Powell is reporting results similar to Guyton.
"It's a little bit of a different thing for our teachers to get accustomed to," Powell said.
Powell said that before the No Child Left Behind Act was passed in 2001, schools could not separate their classes by gender. Now, "as long as schools feel like what they're doing is working and that edu cation is improving, we can do it."
Adams is not a transformation school, but the campus has not met state standards over the last several years.
Teachers at both schools got the idea to split the classes by gender at separate education workshops that they attended in
the summer of 2003.
They learned that boys learn differently from girls.
Boys, for example, learn easier if the lessons are more hands-on and when they have activities that allow them to ge
t away from their desk for a few minutes, Guyton said. Girls need individualized attention and they need to be congratulated by name when they get the right answer.
By separating the sexes, teachers can adjust their instructional styles to accommodate strengths and weaknesses.
"I love it," said language teacher Luke Taylor. "The kids are more focused and I don't have to worry as much about them passing notes in class."
Eighth-grade world history teacher Julie Shirah, in her first year at Mobile County Training, said she likes not having to "fight the hormones in class."
Fifteen-year-old Lafreda Brewer said she doesn't really miss having boys in her classes. "My grades are totally better because I can concentrate now without being dist
racted or worrying about my looks. It's easier to concentrate on school."
Guyton, who shied away from publicity last year, said there has been a change in philosophy at Mobile County Training School. "I'm not trying to buck a trend," he said. "I'm tryin
g to do what's best for the children."
*************
I was going to say that if separating the sexes improved grades that dramatically think what could happen if you separated the races, but then I discovered that Mobile County Training middle school is 100% nigger. Oh well, it was a thought.
T.N.B.
School finds success in separating sexes Principal says test scores are up and discipline problems down
Principal Aaron Guyton said some students were upset when they found out that boys and girls would be placed in separate classes at Mobile County Training middle school.
But with test scores up and discipline problems down, Guyton is making no apologies now.
While some students say they miss being able to flirt and talk to members of the opposite sex as often, many said they feel more comfortable in class now. They're asking more questions during class discussions and their grades have improved, teachers said.
"I like it. It makes our learning environment more product
ive," said 14-year-old Cornelius Davis, "but on the other hand, I like girls in my class.
"
The Plateau school, which has been one of the lowest performing campuses in the county, is one of two local schools experimenting with all-boy and all-girl classes. Adams Middle School in Saraland is the other.
Both schools started with a handful of gender-separate classes last year. They expanded this year to include all seventh- and eighth-grade classes at Mobile County Training School and most sixth grade classes at Adams.
At Mobile County Training School, eighth-grade Stanford Achievement Test math scores went up last year from the 19th percentile -- meaning students performed better than only 19 percent of pupils nationwide -- to the 40th percentile, according to the State Department of Education.
"Initially it was hard. The boys complained that they didn't have any females in their classes," said Guyton, who, in his second year as principal
at Mobile County Training, made separating the classes one of his first major changes at the school.
"I didn't get any compla
ints from the girls," he added.
Mobile County Training is one of five so-called transformation schools recently restaffed in an effort to improve student achievement.
Adams Principal John Powell is reporting results similar to Guyton.
"It's a little bit of a different thing for our teachers to get accustomed to," Powell said.
Powell said that before the No Child Left Behind Act was passed in 2001, schools could not separate their classes by gender. Now, "as long as schools feel like what they're doing is working and that edu cation is improving, we can do it."
Adams is not a transformation school, but the campus has not met state standards over the last several years.
Teachers at both schools got the idea to split the classes by gender at separate education workshops that they attended in
the summer of 2003.
They learned that boys learn differently from girls.
Boys, for example, learn easier if the lessons are more hands-on and when they have activities that allow them to ge
t away from their desk for a few minutes, Guyton said. Girls need individualized attention and they need to be congratulated by name when they get the right answer.
By separating the sexes, teachers can adjust their instructional styles to accommodate strengths and weaknesses.
"I love it," said language teacher Luke Taylor. "The kids are more focused and I don't have to worry as much about them passing notes in class."
Eighth-grade world history teacher Julie Shirah, in her first year at Mobile County Training, said she likes not having to "fight the hormones in class."
Fifteen-year-old Lafreda Brewer said she doesn't really miss having boys in her classes. "My grades are totally better because I can concentrate now without being dist
racted or worrying about my looks. It's easier to concentrate on school."
Guyton, who shied away from publicity last year, said there has been a change in philosophy at Mobile County Training School. "I'm not trying to buck a trend," he said. "I'm tryin
g to do what's best for the children."
*************
I was going to say that if separating the sexes improved grades that dramatically think what could happen if you separated the races, but then I discovered that Mobile County Training middle school is 100% nigger. Oh well, it was a thought.
T.N.B.
