There are many reasons why we are so passionate about the education of girls. Here are some of them:-

• Girls can focus on the learning experience. In a co-ed situation girls can lose   out to boys who tend to dominate teacher time.
• Girls are more likely to take intellectual risks and be less passive in a single sex classes especially in their teenage years. They prefer to solve problems by teamworking.
• Subject choices are not polarised into traditional male and female subjects.
• Girls grow in self-esteem and confidence without constantly being placed under social pressure from boys. They have the space and security in which to build up their self-esteem and confidence in their own abilities as individuals.
• Girls mature physically, mentally and emotionally earlier than boys and are not held back in a single sex environment.
• Girls can have many opportunities for leadership roles in single sex schools.

Jane Carwithen, Head of Saint Martin’s, is a member of the Girls’ Schools Association. You will find their website of interest and it gives you more information on the benefits of girls’ education. www.gsa.uk.com

Parents may be interested to look at My Daughter, a website run by the GSA which provides expert guidance on raising and educating girls; www.mydaughter.co.uk.  Copies of their latest newsletters are available here; October, July, May.