You and I are roughly the same vintage and I also went to a good school. It was co-Ed, pupils came from one of the poorest council wards in the UK (indeed in the then EEC) as well as one of the most prosperous, so we had a mix of males, females, those in poverty (post industrial city in the time of Mrs Thatcher), working class (like me), middle class, religions, ethnicity and skills. A solid Scottish education. The school had previously been girls only, but this changed in the early 70s. I learnt to respect women being brought up in a matriarchal family. Like lots of my friends. And being at school with girls from the age of 4 to 17 I formed wonderful and still existing friendships with many. We learned where lines were drawn, how to behave, not to cross the line or you'd get a kiss, a Glesga kiss,(Glaswegian women can be fearce regardless of age) and we (most of us) were all the better for being co-Ed. I really can't imagine why anyone would send their child to a same sex school. I'm sure most pupils at Eton and other such schools turn out as well adjusted as a 17 or 18 can be. But, there are also the mal-adjusted, and they carry this problem with them for the rest of their lives. I'm not going to mention any names.... Great post and I hope things change at Eton, as long as such selective "public" schools exist. 👍
My daughter (14- also an end of August baby) is at an all girls Grammar School in Tonbridge. My boy is just about to go to an all boys secondary. But it is going co-Ed next year. Their mum went to an all girls Convent school in Sussex, I sometimes went to a co-Ed secondary school. I have no idea whether it’s a good thing or not. I know that both her and my daughter are pretty formidable ladies who both know how to deal with me in very short order and we will see how the boy turns out! It’s really not something I’ve thought about till reading this- but it’s right isn’t it? Life isn’t all male or female. It’s the formative years. So must have an effect!
All of the American peers of Eton went co-ed years ago and it has been fine. While coeducation is good for boys, it is less good for girls, who even today tend to get shouted down. If Eton does go coed, they must absolutely hire strong female faculty and fifty percent of them. They could have had female faculty anyway when you were there and that, as much as having girls around, might have mitigated your shyness and sense of intellectual superiority. I went to a women's college (university) in the US, which gave women role models and support (and lifelong friends) that they still do not get at the Ivy League schools of the same level. Boys and girls have different learning styles. I once saw boys' described as loud, fast and late. It may make sense to have some classes coed and some single sex. I also learned a shocking thing from my son, who went to an Eton-style place (Groton to be precise), which is that the boys don't pay attention in class and don't take notes. They know the girls do this better and are shameless about mooching off them. I sent my daughter to a similar place (Choate) with strict instructions to avoid being bamboozled.
After the article in this week’s Spectator are you throwing your hat in the ring to be the next Provost then Guy?
I trod the same path a decade later and we definitely had a lot of interaction with the local girls schools (debating, theatre etc) although I don’t disagree with your main argument. Can’t see it happening though!
Co-ed and comprehensive...definitely the way forward for schools.
I missed you by a couple of years Guy. I used to cycle from a bedsit in Dorney Reach through Eton and on through to Slough where I taught in a middle school. It struck me at the time as I slalomed my way through the impeccably dressed boys how within 2 miles education can look so different...Best bit of my cycle ride...
From a female perspective, I attended a comp back in the 70s and 80s and was very lucky to be in a class that worked hard, yet still had a good time. Having both boys and girls together was key to that - there was a fair bit of good natured tomfoolery, but everyone got on well. I know there are studies that indicate academic attainment is much improved in boys/girls-only establishments, but I won’t comment on that here. I’m just glad I had the experience I did and I would have thought that co-ed would bring a different, more rounded, learning experience to Eton. There is the issue of wealth too, of course, and how accessible these schools are, but that’s another matter. My ex-boss went to public school and he was hugely supportive and helpful and I learned a lot from him, particularly around public speaking and lecturing! I’ve gone waaaay off topic now - sorry!
My own August baby (now 17) attends a school that's been single-sex for even longer than your place, but one that has also recently announced it's going co-ed. The announcement, unfortunately, appeared out of a clear blue sky just as the covid lockdown ended, at a time when we all craved certainty, stability, and yet what we got was ... that. Also, I have to admit I'm a total reactionary by natural inclination and it takes me forever to come round to anything novel.
Having said that, you do make a very strong case for co-education at Eton. It's genuinely interesting to read about your experiences and your reflections on them, to the extent that it's made me revise ever so slightly my lurking horror regarding any change to my son's school - which, to be fair, has for ages educated dons' daughters and other random females here and there, so, in the way of these things, it's in fact less of a revolution than modernisers might claim.
Oh well, any institution that started out as sort of glorified chantry but managed to survive the reformation, the civil wars and everything that's followed will probably be able to cope with females, too.
I agree - life is Co-Ed, so ideally the school experience should be.
I also went to an all boys public school from 1984 to 1988, but left to do my A levels at a local 6th form college (thankfully co-ed). I can identify and agree with most of what you write here. Incidentally, my old school went co-ed some years ago and is thriving.
Ampleforth appears to have benefitted immensely from going co-ed, despite its chronic problem with abuse (which, thankfully, I neither witnessed or experienced), so I reckon Eton and others should join the 21st century.
V well put. Females are usually much more developed than males in the school year age so apart from the emotional benefits I’m sure Eton would find itself with even greater academic success rates. Plus, less wankers would be in politics, finance, military etc etc…
You and I are roughly the same vintage and I also went to a good school. It was co-Ed, pupils came from one of the poorest council wards in the UK (indeed in the then EEC) as well as one of the most prosperous, so we had a mix of males, females, those in poverty (post industrial city in the time of Mrs Thatcher), working class (like me), middle class, religions, ethnicity and skills. A solid Scottish education. The school had previously been girls only, but this changed in the early 70s. I learnt to respect women being brought up in a matriarchal family. Like lots of my friends. And being at school with girls from the age of 4 to 17 I formed wonderful and still existing friendships with many. We learned where lines were drawn, how to behave, not to cross the line or you'd get a kiss, a Glesga kiss,(Glaswegian women can be fearce regardless of age) and we (most of us) were all the better for being co-Ed. I really can't imagine why anyone would send their child to a same sex school. I'm sure most pupils at Eton and other such schools turn out as well adjusted as a 17 or 18 can be. But, there are also the mal-adjusted, and they carry this problem with them for the rest of their lives. I'm not going to mention any names.... Great post and I hope things change at Eton, as long as such selective "public" schools exist. 👍
My daughter (14- also an end of August baby) is at an all girls Grammar School in Tonbridge. My boy is just about to go to an all boys secondary. But it is going co-Ed next year. Their mum went to an all girls Convent school in Sussex, I sometimes went to a co-Ed secondary school. I have no idea whether it’s a good thing or not. I know that both her and my daughter are pretty formidable ladies who both know how to deal with me in very short order and we will see how the boy turns out! It’s really not something I’ve thought about till reading this- but it’s right isn’t it? Life isn’t all male or female. It’s the formative years. So must have an effect!
All of the American peers of Eton went co-ed years ago and it has been fine. While coeducation is good for boys, it is less good for girls, who even today tend to get shouted down. If Eton does go coed, they must absolutely hire strong female faculty and fifty percent of them. They could have had female faculty anyway when you were there and that, as much as having girls around, might have mitigated your shyness and sense of intellectual superiority. I went to a women's college (university) in the US, which gave women role models and support (and lifelong friends) that they still do not get at the Ivy League schools of the same level. Boys and girls have different learning styles. I once saw boys' described as loud, fast and late. It may make sense to have some classes coed and some single sex. I also learned a shocking thing from my son, who went to an Eton-style place (Groton to be precise), which is that the boys don't pay attention in class and don't take notes. They know the girls do this better and are shameless about mooching off them. I sent my daughter to a similar place (Choate) with strict instructions to avoid being bamboozled.
After the article in this week’s Spectator are you throwing your hat in the ring to be the next Provost then Guy?
I trod the same path a decade later and we definitely had a lot of interaction with the local girls schools (debating, theatre etc) although I don’t disagree with your main argument. Can’t see it happening though!
Co-ed and comprehensive...definitely the way forward for schools.
I missed you by a couple of years Guy. I used to cycle from a bedsit in Dorney Reach through Eton and on through to Slough where I taught in a middle school. It struck me at the time as I slalomed my way through the impeccably dressed boys how within 2 miles education can look so different...Best bit of my cycle ride...
On an iconoclastic roll today; what next the monarchy?😉
From a female perspective, I attended a comp back in the 70s and 80s and was very lucky to be in a class that worked hard, yet still had a good time. Having both boys and girls together was key to that - there was a fair bit of good natured tomfoolery, but everyone got on well. I know there are studies that indicate academic attainment is much improved in boys/girls-only establishments, but I won’t comment on that here. I’m just glad I had the experience I did and I would have thought that co-ed would bring a different, more rounded, learning experience to Eton. There is the issue of wealth too, of course, and how accessible these schools are, but that’s another matter. My ex-boss went to public school and he was hugely supportive and helpful and I learned a lot from him, particularly around public speaking and lecturing! I’ve gone waaaay off topic now - sorry!
Hmm ... mixed feelings about this one.
My own August baby (now 17) attends a school that's been single-sex for even longer than your place, but one that has also recently announced it's going co-ed. The announcement, unfortunately, appeared out of a clear blue sky just as the covid lockdown ended, at a time when we all craved certainty, stability, and yet what we got was ... that. Also, I have to admit I'm a total reactionary by natural inclination and it takes me forever to come round to anything novel.
Having said that, you do make a very strong case for co-education at Eton. It's genuinely interesting to read about your experiences and your reflections on them, to the extent that it's made me revise ever so slightly my lurking horror regarding any change to my son's school - which, to be fair, has for ages educated dons' daughters and other random females here and there, so, in the way of these things, it's in fact less of a revolution than modernisers might claim.
Oh well, any institution that started out as sort of glorified chantry but managed to survive the reformation, the civil wars and everything that's followed will probably be able to cope with females, too.
I agree - life is Co-Ed, so ideally the school experience should be.
I also went to an all boys public school from 1984 to 1988, but left to do my A levels at a local 6th form college (thankfully co-ed). I can identify and agree with most of what you write here. Incidentally, my old school went co-ed some years ago and is thriving.
Ampleforth appears to have benefitted immensely from going co-ed, despite its chronic problem with abuse (which, thankfully, I neither witnessed or experienced), so I reckon Eton and others should join the 21st century.
V well put. Females are usually much more developed than males in the school year age so apart from the emotional benefits I’m sure Eton would find itself with even greater academic success rates. Plus, less wankers would be in politics, finance, military etc etc…