The transition from single-sex to co-ed Physics teaching and its effects on achievement : a study

Abstract

The main aim of this study was to investigate the effects, if any, of co-education on physics achievement by analysing the SEC physics 2017, 2018 and 2019 May sessions. Students who attended State schools and who sat for the 2017 and 2018 sessions, were taught in a single-sex environment whilst the 2019 session was the first session where State school students were taught in a co-ed environment. This study shows that when comparing the results of the three sessions, there were no significant differences that could be attributed to co-education, both in paper A and paper B. Females tend to outperform their male counterparts, and the difference between the genders resulted to be significant in Church schools. This study also analysed the views of Form 4 students on their perceived Physics achievement, their classroom environment, their attitudes towards the subject and their views on gender equity. Students in State and Independent schools show a higher mean rating score to gender equity, presumably since they are in a co-ed environment. Students in Church schools show a lower mean rating score towards gender equity. While males in all three sectors show a high perceived physics achievement with no significant differences, there is a significant difference in their female counterparts where females attending Church schools report a significantly higher perceived physics achievement. Lastly, this study analysed the views on co-education of four physics school administrators through interviews. Although they almost all agree that co-education is the right setup for teaching, one physics school administrator believes that this setup hinders girls’ progress due to less competition from the male peers. All interviewees agreed that co-education changed the way how they teach physics and how they administer discipline.