Depending on how it’s implemented, gender segregation in public schools can run afoul of Title IX, which is a federal law prohibiting discrimination based on gender in any program that receives federal funding. It could also violate the 14th Amendment, which forbids discrimination of any kind.

What if both the boys and girls classes are taught the same subjects and have access to the same resources? Would that still be discrimination?
We’ve all heard of the famous Supreme Court case, Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, which ruled that “separate but equal” facilities were an unconstitutional form of discrimination. That case referred specifically to racial discrimination, but it would also apply to gender discrimination. However, there are circumstances under which gender segregated classrooms would be legal.

What are those circumstances?
First, private schools can segregate by gender as much as they want, because they aren’t publically funded. Public schools who want to try gender segregation have to make it voluntary. It should not be district wide – there should be plenty of non-segregated options for parents and students to choose from if they don’t think a segregated classroom is a good choice.

There was a lawsuit filed over segregated classrooms.
It happened in 2006, and it’s a perfect example of how not to go about gender segregation. A junior high school in Louisiana simply implemented gender segregated classrooms throughout the school, with no community input or comment period. Students who lived in that area had no other public schools to attend if they disagreed with the policy. A lawsuit by the ACLU lead to the school abandoning the idea before the school year began.

What is Missouri’s stance?
The Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education works hard to stay in compliance with Title IX, so any segregated classrooms must be carefully designed to meet federal standards. Current federal guidelines require that the segregated classes be voluntary and that equal non-segregated classes must be offered.

What are the arguments in favor of gender segregation?
Proponents claim that boys and girls distract each other and can concentrate better on learning in a segregated classroom. They also cite studies that show improvements in test scores when the genders are split up. Some people also suggest that instruction methods should be tailored to each gender, because boys and girls learn differently.

Why are some people against it?
Some of the research is dubious, inconclusive, or contradicted by other research. Worse, some schools are basing their programs on pop-psychology books that are known for bad science. For example, one author supporting segregation gave a talk to educators and claimed that the “Crockus” is four times larger in boys’ brains than girls’ brains. The Crockus, of course, doesn’t exist. It’s also impossible to make generalizations about teaching methods for all boys or girls. Certainly there are differences, but there are just as many differences between different boys as between boys and girls.