Abstract
The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, followed by the 2006 U.S. Department of Education regulations, represented a drastic change in American public policy by allowing for sex segregation in public schools—as long as it is voluntary, students are provided a substantially equal co-educational option, and the segregation substantially furthers an important governmental objective. Although existing federal and state laws explicitly ban sex segregation, the Courts have historically allowed single-sex schooling within higher education if it does not perpetuate gender stereotypes. Because of the recent public policy changes, there has been a rapid increase in single-sex education within the U.S. public elementary and secondary school system. Many of the now single-sex public schools, however, began segregating because they believe that boys and girls should be taught differently due to innate differences in learning styles and interests. The result is that many of these schools base their educational practices on gender stereotypes. This contradiction of existing laws and precedents has resulted in ongoing lawsuits. This paper offers a review of the legal issues and court cases surrounding single-sex education in the public school system.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
American Civil Liberties Union (2010c). ACLU challenges Louisiana school sex-segregation program before Federal Appeals Court. Retrieved from http://www.aclu.org/womens-rights/aclu-challenges-louisiana-school-sex-segregation-program-federal-appeals-court
American Civil Liberties Union. (2008). First Amended Complaint. Case of A.N.A. v. Breckinridge County Public School District. Civil Action No. 3:08-cv-00004-CRS. Retrieved from http://www.aclu.org/files/pdfs/womensrights/ana_v_usdeptofeducation_amendedcomplaint.pdf.
American Civil Liberties Union. (2009). Alabama school district agrees to end illegal sex segregation. Retrieved from http://www.aclu.org/womens-rights/alabama-open-records-act-requests
American Civil Liberties Union. (2010a). Motion for Summary Judgment. Case of A.N.A. v. Breckinridge County Public School District. Civil Action No. 3:08-cv-00004-CRS. Retrieved from http://www.aclu.org/files/assets/Memorandum_of_Law_2.pdf.
American Civil Liberties Union. (2010b). Amicus Brief. Case of Doe et al. v. Vermillion Parish School Board et al. (2010). Case No. 10-30378. Retrieved from http://www.aclu.org/files/assets/2010-6-4-DoevVermilion-DOJAmicusbrief.pdf.
Caplice, K. S. (1994). The case for public single-sex education. Harvard Journal of Law and Public Policy, 18, 227–292.
Center for New York City Affairs (2010). Insideschools.org Review. Retrieved from http://insideschools.org/index12.php?fs=188.
Education Amendments of 1972, 20 U.S.C. 1681 (Title IX). (1972).
Equal Education Opportunities Act, 20 U.S.C. § 1701–1758. (1974)
Gurian, M. (2001). Boys and girls learn differently! San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
Killian, J. H., Costello, G. A., & Thomas, K. R. (2004). The Constitution of the United States of America: Analysis and interpretation: Analysis of cases decided by the Supreme Court of the United States to June 28, 2002. Washington D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office.
Mary Baldwin College. (2010). Retrieved from http://www.mbc.edu/vwil/director.php.
Mississippi University for Women v. Hogan. 458 U.S. 718 (1982).
National Association of Single-Sex Public Education. (2010). Retrieved from http://www.singlesexschools.org/schools-schools.htm
National Coalition of Girls’ Schools (2010). Retrieved from http://www.ncgs.org/aboutgirlsschools/thereasearch
No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, Pub. L. No. 107-110, section 5131(a)(23) (2001).
Nolan, K. (2006, March 9). School to explore science of gender; Arrowhead will offer separate classes for boys, girls. Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, p. 3B.
Rao, A., & Seaton, M. (2009). The way of boys: Raising healthy boys in a challenging and complex world. New York: William Morrow.
Rigdon, A. R. (2008). Dangerous data: How disputed research legalized public single-sex education. Stetson Law Review, 37, 527–578.
Salomone, R. C. (2003). Same, different, equal: Rethinking single-sex schooling. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press.
Salomone, R. C. (2006). Single-sex programs: Resolving the research conundrum. Teachers College Record, 108, 778–802.
Sax, L. (2005). Why gender matters: What parents and teachers need to know about the emerging science of sex differences. New York: Doubleday.
U.S. Constitution, Amendment XIV, §1.
U.S. Department of Education. (2006). 34 C.F.R. § 106.34(b)(1).
United States v. Virginia et al. (94-1941), 518 U.S. 515 (1996).
Wei1, E. (2008, March 2). Teaching boys and girls separately. New York Times, p. 38.
Whitmire, R. (2010). Why boys fail: Saving our sons from an educational system that’s leaving them behind. New York: AMACOM.
Young Women's Leadership Network (2010). Retrieved from http://www.ywlnetwrk.org/about_people.htm
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Brown, C.S. Legal Issues Surrounding Single-Sex Schools in the U.S.: Trends, Court Cases, and Conflicting Laws. Sex Roles 69, 356–362 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11199-011-0001-x
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11199-011-0001-x