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Visible Learning™
Visible Learning MetaX
Version 1.4 – Updated February 2026

Single-sex schools

Overview

  • Influence: Single-sex schools
  • Domain: School
  • Sub-Domain: Types of schools
  • Potential to Accelerate Student Achievement: Likely to have a small positive impact
  • Influence Definition: Single-sex – that is, all-male or all-female schools.

Evidence

  • Number of meta-analyses: 2
  • Number of studies: 205
  • Number of students: 1,600,000
  • Number of effects: 259
  • Weighted mean effect size: 0.16
  • Robustness index: 3

Meta-Analyses

Meta-Analyses
Journal Title Author Article Name Year Published Variable Number of Studies Number of Students Number of Effects Effect Size
Psychological Bulletin Pahlke, Hyde & Allison The effects of single-sex compared with coeducational schooling on students' performance and attitudes: A meta-analysis 2014 Single vs. Coed Schools (on girls and boys) on achievement 184 1,600,000 238 0.17
Sex roles Signorella, Hayes, & Li A meta-analytic critique of Mael et al.'s (2005) review of single-sex schooling. 2013 Single vs. Coed Schools on achievement 21 NA 21 0.03
TOTAL/AVERAGE 205 1,600,000 259 0.10
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