Doing things a little different

In most schools, classes are not separated into boys and girls. But I was in a physical education class today that was. This was the first time I had seen or heard of this and it caught me by surprise. I asked my cooperating teacher why the class was all girls in this case and there were a few reasons for this.

One big reason is the difference between boys and girls. Boys are typically much stronger and more aggressive when it comes to games and this is often unfair to the girls. Girls sometimes get pushed to the side and are overshadowed by boys and do not get a good experience in a physical education class as they should. But by separating them, the girls most likely feel more comfortable when they are just with girls and get more out of their physical education class. I know from previous experience in school that typically girls in physical education classes are not very active at times and do not get the activity they need during a class. But in the classes I was in today, the girls were very active throughout the whole period and seemed to enjoy the class much more than I expected. I believe being separated from the boys had a big part in this.

Another reason for the separation is the games they play. As a boy, my favorite physical education game was dodge ball and I think most other boys would agree with me on that. Girls were not usually as fond of this game as we were. There were also games that boys were not fond of that girls were such as badminton and volleyball. By having the classes separated, this solves the problem of the students having to participate in activities they do not enjoy.

Separating physical education classes into boys and girls was something I would have never thought of. But just from my short time in the class, it seems to be a success. Both boys and girls get more out of the class because of this and they also get more enjoyment from the class by being separated. This seems like a win-win situation for all and other schools should strongly consider this idea.