Note: for the sake of argument, I'm running with the egregious gender stereotyping expressed in the article. By no means do I agree with it! I am a female who loves graphic novels and is very very competitive, so I would have done way better in the "boy's class" as a child.

I went to a de facto gender-segregated school, a small religious . When I transitioned to a co-ed school, I couldn't look a boy in the face or talk to him without giggling my head off. People forget that school is about more than learning -- it's about socializing and attaining the skills you need in the real world, and unless you live in Iran, the real world is most definitely co-ed.

Instead of separating classes, why not teach boys the social and personal skills needed to achieve in front of girls, if that's such a problem? How will boys like that achieve in the workplace if the presence of females is so dang horrible for them? You're just putting off the inevitable, and having the boys deal with that in a worse set of circumstances, one where performing well can mean economic success or potential poverty.

The expressed concerns about girls applies, too. What about the girls who like graphic novels? If they hear boys talking about them at lunch, they might feel as if they, as girls, aren't "allowed" to like such things, thus reinforcing gender stereotypes. Also, although girls might initially cry at being admonished, they need to learn to deal with constructive criticism. Again, you're just delaying the inevitable and creating a worse situation in which they will be forced to learn.

Zhyenshshina, I studied in 2008 in an all-female classroom, in my second year of High School. There was an all-male one, too.

There are many problems about this. In my school, our studies weren't tailored to our "strenghts", it was really equal and our Math teachers loved us - Minus a really annoying girl that annoyed the hell out of me and out of everyone.

So, it started as "OH GOD I NEED MAH BOIS". They wanted to go to school dressed as boys, as opposed to the segregation. They didn't to it. Then, there was the "YAY, FEMINISM! GIRL POWER! WOMAN POWER!". Feminism only in part of the name, it was really lipstick feminism and fake empowerment. I really, really, really hated it.

And then there was the "WE WOMEN TALK TOO MUCH IT'S IMPOSSIBLE TO HAVE CLASS HERE OH GOD OH GOD ME WANTZ BOIS". Rly. It was that exact way. Every damn time when a teacher complained about noise, they said it. One day, I stood up and said:

"It isn't a matter of sex! It's a matter of education! You all think it's OK to talk and talk and takl just because we are women and you think it's natural to us to do it! It isn't! There isn't anything on your genes that makes you start talking until general ears bleed! It's just a stupid excuse to continue talking, so PLEASE be a intelligent person and shut up and stop blaming your vagina."

Or something like that. I was really angry.

Then they said: "ONOZ, the boys don't talk that much. It's because we are women."

Women vs women, when we should be One vs Everyone In Grades. Fail. Yes, high school and college in Brazil are srs bsns and there is a general competition about that.

So Yeah. It stood until the boys threw a chair -- Lemme repeat thar, a CHAIR -- Trough the window.

They did not stop talking, but at least stopped saying "WE R WOMEN, WE R INFERIOR AND TALK MOAR". It was a really difficult year and in some classes I couldn't even HEAR what the teachers were saying.

Anyway, the boys were also pretty bad.

Still, now we are reunitted, and I don't really think things are better. Maybe it's a matter of Good Student vs Bad, Stupid, Hateable Student.

I know it isn't the same thing as that NY School, but it was gender-separated, so... Sorry for any rant. I hope you find my experience at least midly interesting.

And yes, to segregate girls and boys and to teach them differently is FAIL. So much fail.

there are benefits to gender separated classes i went to one for a few weeks as an exchange student and it was amazing (I'm a high-schooler). I can't speak for the guys in my class, but i find classes to be more focused when there aren't guys. I'm not saying that female and male students should have nothing to do with each other, but in some classes where the boys dominate the discussion, it would be beneficial to have separate classes. Peggy Orenstein's book "Schoolgirls" is really interesting and mentions this

So because you have Daddy issues - you think it's acceptable to hate on all fathers? Well, you know what? My life wasn't perfect either. My mom used to beat the crap out of me. I wasn in care by age 10. My brother was beaten with an organ leg, and moved out by age 11. My Sister also was gone by age 11. I was the youngest. We all suffered. When he slaps had no effect on me any more - she resorted to using weapons, canes, shoes bedroom furniture, whatever she could find.