Executive Summary for Deborah A.

Nattresss Dissertation Title: Benefits of single-gender education: Perceptions of middle grade teachers Author: Deborah A. Nattress, Ph.D. Purpose of the Study: The purpose of this descriptive study was to investigate the perceptions of public, private, and charter middle grade teachers across the United States with regard to the positive academic and behavioral benefits of single-gender education in order to confirm or refute the conclusions reached by Dr. John Fry (2009) in his doctoral dissertation entitled SingleGender Education: Teachers Perspective. In his study, Dr. Fry (2009) surveyed the perceptions of K-12 educators currently involved in single-gender education at public and private institutions in Minnesota and concluded that, according to teachers, single-gender education had a positive effect on students academics and behavior. This quantitative study used the survey instrument developed and tested by Dr. Fry (2009). Uniqueness of Study: Nationwide focus Middle grade teachers only (grades 5-9) Included public, private, and charter school teachers

Research Questions: Three research questions guided this study. These research questions were similar, but not identical to those used by Dr. Fry (2009). (The null and alternate hypotheses were not included in this executive summary.) Research Question 1: What general perceptions do middle grade teachers have regarding singlegender education? Research Question 2: What are the perceived changes middle grade teachers observe in academic achievement with single-gender education? Research Question 3: What are the perceived positive changes in behavioral incidents middle grade teachers observe with single-gender education? Nature of Study: Quantitative methodology Instruments Used in the Study: Copies available upon request 32 question survey created by Dr. Fry (2009) and modified by Nattress (2013) 10 question School Profile Information Form (Nattress, 2013)

Sample: Obtained from School Profile Information form and Part 1 of survey

179 completed teacher surveys (Mean/Average of 7.2 surveys/school) 24 schools: 7 public, 14 private, 3 charter 18 states with no more than 2 schools per state U.S. Census regions used instead of state names for confidentiality purposes (NE, S, MW, W) Highest region was S with regard to number of schools (37.5%) and number of responses (56.7%) Responses per school type: 53% private school, 42% public school, and 5% charter school Tied for location: 45% for urban and suburban. Rural in 3rd with 10% 32% of teachers taught from 6-12 years with 59% 1-5 years experience in single-gender classes and 56% with 1-5 years experience in mixed gender classes 57% of teachers had a Masters degree 67% of the teachers were female

Teachers Survey: Specific results for each question are available Teachers survey had five sections Section 1: Demographic Information (Questions 1-7) Section 2: Heterogeneous Classes (Mixed gender) (Questions 8-14) Section 3: Single-Gender Classes (Questions 15-21) Section 4: Academic Achievement (Questions 22-27) Section 5: Behavioral Changes (Questions 28-32) Analysis for Sections 2/3 included: frequency tables, means, standard deviations, Chronbachs alpha, and paired-sample t-test Analysis for Sections 4/5 included: frequency tables, chi-square goodness-of-fit tests, means, standard deviations, and Kuder-Richardson reliability coefficients

Conclusions: All three null hypotheses were rejected The results indicated that middle grade teachers, currently working in a single-gender format, perceived that the single-gender setting was more beneficial when compared to the heterogeneous setting, and had a positive impact on both academic achievement and behavior.

Recommendations for Practice: Additional research should be continued with regard to single-gender education The survey should be administered at the high school and elementary school level Schools need to provide relevant professional development for teachers and conduct regular evaluations Schools/administrators should considered developing a national standard of excellence for single-gender schools

Specific Interesting Details: 66% of teachers strongly agreed they felt comfortable teaching in a single-gender classroom 55% of teachers strongly agreed students enjoy participating in a single-gender classroom 55% of teachers strongly agreed students were active learners in a single-gender classroom 54% of teachers strongly agreed single-gender classrooms can motivate students to learn 46% of teachers strongly agreed single-gender classrooms help create a positive attitude about school for students 74% of teachers strongly agreed that their administration supports single-gender classrooms Teachers were positive about heterogeneous environments in Section 2, but the percentages for single-gender classrooms (Section 3) were higher. Since those who responded worked in single-gender education, I did not include the percentages for heterogeneous classrooms in this executive summary. They are available if you would like to read the entire dissertation. 56% of teachers indicated students time on-task increased in a single-gender classroom 52% of teachers indicated student grades increased in a single-gender classroom 66% of teachers indicated that female participation was greater in a single-gender classroom 49% of teachers indicated that male participation was greater in a single-gender classroom 73% of teachers indicated that students self-esteem increased in a single-gender classroom 65% of teachers indicated that student distractions decreased in a single-gender classroom 58% of teachers indicated a decrease in gender stereotypes in a single-gender classroom 57% of teachers indicated a decrease in discipline referrals in a single-gender classroom 59% of teachers indicated an improvement in students attitudes toward school in a single-gender classroom In sections 4 (academic change) and 5 (behavioral change), single-gender was the top choice for every question, followed by no difference observed. The choice of heterogeneous or mixed gender classrooms was last with less than 9% for each question except the question on male participation (14% for heterogeneous).

Contact Information: Deborah A. Nattress, Ph.D. P.O. Box 250, Angelus Oaks, CA 92305 Home: (909) 794-1179 Cell: (951) 834-3831 nattress52@msn.com
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