# What do you think about DC's new all-boy high school? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [August 22, 2016, 10:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-think-about-dcs-new-all-boy-high-school/763678 "2016-08-22T22:30:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Caffeine.addict](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f475e1/32.png) [@Caffeine.addict](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Caffeine.addict)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2016, 1:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-think-about-dcs-new-all-boy-high-school/763678/21 "2016-08-23T13:41:09Z")
> [@levdrakon](#): > > That’s weird. Not the demographics, but being limited to one school district. The school is open to students city-wide. It’s just that the neighboring jurisdictions are in other states. Aside from PG County, the surrounding jurisdictions have really good school systems. [Deanwood](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deanwood)isn’t a neighborhood that is particularly convenient to most people, and traditionally, is one of the poorest in the city. It will be a nice campus, but I don’t think that affluent families from Ward 3 will be clamoring to send their kids there. DCPS isn’t particularly underfunded. The District has been spending a lot of money rehabbing schools over the last few years. (Sadly, not enough considering how bad some of the schools had deteriorated). The city did a nice job building rebuilding Dunbar High school. The charter schools are now enrolling over 40% of school age kids. The affluent families tend to send their kids to either private schools, move to Wilson’s enrollment area, or move to the suburbs. ---
**Author:** ![Chimera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Chimera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chimera)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2016, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-think-about-dcs-new-all-boy-high-school/763678/22 "2016-08-23T14:15:10Z")
I’d prefer if we didn’t have single sex schools. More for the boys than girls. Boys that age need to be around girls, see them as fellow humans and be taught not to be assholes. Oh, it works the same way for girls, they need to see actual boys and learn that they don’t play the same games or react the same way and need to actually be clued in to things girls think are obvious. One of the single biggest values of public schools is Socialization. Learning to get along with other people, even those you don’t like, and being prepared for life in our society. ---
**Author:** ![Asimovian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asimovian/32/172_2.png) [@Asimovian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asimovian)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2016, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-think-about-dcs-new-all-boy-high-school/763678/23 "2016-08-23T15:39:25Z")
> [@Chimera](#): > > More for the boys than girls. Boys that age need to be around girls, see them as fellow humans and be taught not to be assholes. Oh, it works the same way for girls, they need to see actual boys and learn that they don’t play the same games or react the same way and need to actually be clued in to things girls think are obvious. Serious question: is there evidence out there to suggest that kids who attend single-sex schools are worse at socialization than those who attend coed schools? ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2016, 4:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-think-about-dcs-new-all-boy-high-school/763678/24 "2016-08-23T16:48:26Z")
I have direct experience with mono-culture schooling. It is a bad, bad, _bad_ thing. People, especially kids, need to be around a diverse group of people. It’s not a fix for anything unless your goal is to drive groups apart. ---
**Author:** ![slash2k](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/439d5e/32.png) [@slash2k](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slash2k)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2016, 5:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-think-about-dcs-new-all-boy-high-school/763678/25 "2016-08-23T17:44:18Z")
There’s some evidence (hardly conclusive, however) that at least some boys may do better in a single-sex classroom. See [this article](http://www.apa.org/monitor/2011/02/coed.aspx) from the American Psychological Association for an overview. ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2016, 5:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-think-about-dcs-new-all-boy-high-school/763678/26 "2016-08-23T17:55:37Z")
> [@ftg](#): > > I have direct experience with mono-culture schooling. > > It is a bad, bad, _bad_ thing. People, especially kids, need to be around a diverse group of people. > > It’s not a fix for anything unless your goal is to drive groups apart. What does mono-culture mean? ---
**Author:** ![MandaJo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ac91a4/32.png) [@MandaJo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MandaJo)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2016, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-think-about-dcs-new-all-boy-high-school/763678/27 "2016-08-23T18:04:09Z")
I think there is a significant difference between having a single-sex school as an option as part of a robust and diverse system and moving a whole system over to single-sex. The question is not “is this good for most kids” but rather “are there kids that would benefit from this?” I tend to think that that is the case. ---
**Author:** ![Asimovian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asimovian/32/172_2.png) [@Asimovian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asimovian)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2016, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-think-about-dcs-new-all-boy-high-school/763678/28 "2016-08-23T19:19:37Z")
> [@MandaJo](#): > > I think there is a significant difference between having a single-sex school as an option as part of a robust and diverse system and moving a whole system over to single-sex. The question is not “is this good for most kids” but rather “are there kids that would benefit from this?” I tend to think that that is the case. Well said. ---
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2016, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-think-about-dcs-new-all-boy-high-school/763678/29 "2016-08-23T19:31:23Z")
I can easily see how some might do better in a environment where they can focus. Re the “more resources/newer schools” = successful minority students argument how did those scenarios when implemented pan out? Did minority kids test much better in schools with more resources? ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2016, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-think-about-dcs-new-all-boy-high-school/763678/30 "2016-08-23T19:36:37Z")
> [@astro](#): > > I can easily see how some might do better in a environment where they can focus. Re the “more resources/newer schools” = successful minority students argument how did those scenarios when implemented pan out? Did minority kids test much better in schools with more resources? New test. We’ll see. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2016, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-think-about-dcs-new-all-boy-high-school/763678/31 "2016-08-23T19:44:07Z")
Forget the tests. Standardized tests are stupid. Do the kids from this school graduate and go onto college, the military, etc? ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2016, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-think-about-dcs-new-all-boy-high-school/763678/32 "2016-08-23T19:49:30Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > Forget the tests. Standardized tests are stupid. Do the kids from this school graduate and go onto college, the military, etc? Exactly. Let’s see. I’m betting on better results. Forcing boys to socialize with feminism is bullshit. We’ve been doing that. Boys are failing in feminized school systems. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2016, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-think-about-dcs-new-all-boy-high-school/763678/33 "2016-08-23T20:13:10Z")
OK. I’m not sure what “to socialize with feminism” means, but most straight boys of high school age want to socialize with straight girls of high school age. Edited to add, no need to force them. ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2016, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-think-about-dcs-new-all-boy-high-school/763678/34 "2016-08-23T20:21:46Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > OK. I’m not sure what “to socialize with feminism” means, but most straight boys of high school age want to socialize with straight girls of high school age. > > Edited to add, no need to force them. I went to coed k-8 with girls and went to all boy high school, and after school I went to work at my part time job with women and then hung out with my friends who were girl and boy and went home to my female mom and sister and I really don’t get this “boys need to be socialized to women” bullshit. People seem to think an all-boy school is engaged in some evil mysterious anti-female conspiracy. Hint from someone from an all-boy high school: no conspiracy. It’s not high school’s job to feminize boys. It really isn’t. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2016, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-think-about-dcs-new-all-boy-high-school/763678/35 "2016-08-23T20:29:17Z")
Let me put it this way; my 17-year-old niece was considering which college to go to. I suggested Smith College, Wellesley College or Mount Holyoke College. She shot down all three because she didn’t want to be an all-female environment. It’s not a matter of her being “masculinized.” She wants to be in a college with male students. ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2016, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-think-about-dcs-new-all-boy-high-school/763678/36 "2016-08-23T20:36:05Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > She wants to be in a college with male students. Good for her. ---
**Author:** ![slash2k](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/439d5e/32.png) [@slash2k](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slash2k)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2016, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-think-about-dcs-new-all-boy-high-school/763678/37 "2016-08-23T22:26:45Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > OK. I’m not sure what “to socialize with feminism” means, but most straight boys of high school age want to socialize with straight girls of high school age. One of the arguments made by supporters of same-sex education precisely addresses this point: boys want to socialize with (or act out to impress) the fairer sex when they’re supposed to be focusing on the teaching. The argument says that when the girls aren’t present, the boys pay more attention to education and less to socializing. Now whether that’s a GOOD argument, I can’t say, but it does have a certain logic to it, at least for some males. ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2016, 11:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-think-about-dcs-new-all-boy-high-school/763678/38 "2016-08-23T23:49:46Z")
> [@slash2k](#): > > One of the arguments made by supporters of same-sex education precisely addresses this point: boys want to socialize with (or act out to impress) the fairer sex when they’re supposed to be focusing on the teaching. The argument says that when the girls aren’t present, the boys pay more attention to education and less to socializing. > > Now whether that’s a GOOD argument, I can’t say, but it does have a certain logic to it, at least for some males. How does “boys need to see girls as fellow humans and be taught not to be assholes” (like they’re animals, thank you sexism) get conflated with “boys want to socialize with them?” And “fairer sex?” Really? Have you ever been to school with girls? ---
**Author:** ![Bill\_Door](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/50afbb/32.png) [@Bill\_Door](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bill_Door)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2016, 12:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-think-about-dcs-new-all-boy-high-school/763678/39 "2016-08-24T00:27:17Z")
> [@levdrakon](#): > > Exactly. Let’s see. I’m betting on better results. Forcing boys to socialize with feminism is bullshit. We’ve been doing that. Boys are failing in feminized school systems. > [@levdrakon](#): > > I went to coed k-8 with girls and went to all boy high school, and after school I went to work at my part time job with women and then hung out with my friends who were girl and boy and went home to my female mom and sister and I really don’t get this “boys need to be socialized to women” bullshit. People seem to think an all-boy school is engaged in some evil mysterious anti-female conspiracy. > > Hint from someone from an all-boy high school: no conspiracy. > > It’s not high school’s job to feminize boys. It really isn’t. You’ll forgive me if I note that when I look around the dope for people who seem socialized to women the name **levdrakon** doesn’t leap to the front of my brain. ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2016, 12:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-think-about-dcs-new-all-boy-high-school/763678/40 "2016-08-24T00:28:40Z")
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