Why Boys Only

We invite you to watch this short video below in which our Headmaster, Mr John Stewart, talks about the advantages of a boys only environment.

More videos on subjects such as "Why Invest in Primary" and "Why Tudor House" can be found in our video gallery.

Why Boys Only?

Tudor House was founded on an holistic approach, educating the whole boy. We have a specialised focus on educating boys at the primary school level. We believe that the younger years are the ones that matter most. Boys, on the whole, do learn differently. Too often it is during the younger years that we hear of boys 'misbehaving', being 'immature', or 'lacking concentration'. We give back to boys the right to be boys, accepting that boys need space, boys need challenges, boys need to be active learners. We understand boys.

We don’t segregate we educate

We carefully specialise in boys. Just because we have a boy focus doesn’t mean our students are null and void when it comes to female integration! Many have sisters! The vast majority of our boys are single boys in families with sisters. It is at our school they have a chance to find ‘brothers’.

More opportunities

One thing you find with boys' education is that it is expansive, and offers more opportunities. We don’t have boys saying, “Don’t go into the choir because you’re a sissy”. We don’t have boys running around yelling, “Girl germs, no returns”. We don’t have boys avoiding asking questions in class because they may be deemed dumb when compared to a girl. And we don’t have boys losing concentration because they have a crush.

What we do have are boys who love being boys: they play in the mud, they climb trees, they ride bikes. They play chess with their friends, they sing in the choir, they dance in lessons, they read in the library, they do ‘boy’ things – not knowing that in some schools such things might be considered ‘girlie’.

And, when we have our school dance, where girls outnumber boys, our boys do know how to be confident and mix socially with girls. And they do so with respect.

Research says boys are falling behind

Much research says boys are failing in co-educational schooling.

Girls are ‘presumed’ to be better at literacy and so this ‘expectation’ becomes self-fulfilling – especially in co-education classes.
Primary schools are more likely to be feminised – a politically charged statement but one that is repeated again and again in research from around the globe.
Maleness is not “affective” – boys are told to be “little men” and “toughen up” rather than allow them to explore and express their more sensitive sides.
In the early years a boy’s maturity is commonly aligned to a year below girls’ of the same age
Boys are more likely to be deemed ‘behaviour problems’, and much more likely to be considered as having ADHD
Boys are not good at engaging for lengthy periods
Boys are movers and ‘doers’ – rather than sitters and listeners
Girls are more rehearsed in the appropriateness of answering questions, and so are more likely to be asked for answers
Boys in co-education classes are more acutely aware of not being made to look foolish in a class with girls
The crucial years for addressing the slide is in the Infants years. This is where a boys-only education has the edge

A single-sex boys education in primary school gives greater scope and opportunity by specializing on how boys learn. Consider the reality – why are governments around the world investing so much money on raising standards in how we teach boys? In general terms, boys ‘learn’ better in boys’ schools because of the specialised focus.

The real worry is this – are co-educational schools structured in ways that ensure quality education is supporting boys' learning needs? Look at the research and you would have serious doubts. Research discusses…
Feminised primary and infant departments
The narrowing of the curriculum to basic skills
Boys are falling behind in literacy
Girls are improving in maths and science – which means boys falling behind in those subjects, too
Behaviour issues in primary schools are 80-90% boy-centric.

These worries have driven the Federal Government, current and past, to invest millions of dollars in boys education. Are K-12 co-educational institutions set up because they are the best learning environments for boys in primary school?

How do we integrate girls?

Girls are welcome in our after school program called Learning For Life. We offer opportunities like the Year Six dance. We also have lots of girls, who are sisters, come to Tudor at pickup – you’ll see them walking around, climbing the monkey bars and just relaxing. Because when you have a brother at Tudor – your family is part of Tudor, too. We are a very open school – there is not a barrier. We have older girls who come from local high schools and help tutor some boys during prep. The Headmaster’s daughters – he has three – and their friends are often found walking around the school as well. This is true of our staff’s daughters also. Tudor has a real community feel.

Focusing on boys’ learning means we can specialise

Boys’ learning is good learning – they need activity, competition, humour, a sense of ownership, time-constraints, scaffolds, longer playtimes, hands-on activities, specific boy themes – skateboarding, surfing, cooperative lesson structures – so they can work together. They need clear boundaries and expectations – such as flag parade and awards. They need good role models and literacy specific focus. They require clear instructions and less teacher-talk time. Boys like fads and crazes. They need specific goals to be set and monitored. They need some elements to be more relaxed – at playtime booting a ball or tackling each other is okay. They love technology and they love to be treated as boys.

It simply isn’t possible to detail the adventure that is Tudor House. Why not register for a tour by contacting Mr David Musgrove, our Director of Enrolments, or phone the school on (02) 4868 0000. We're sure you'll be pleasantly surprised!

Download a PDF of 'The Case for...Why Boys Only". It might be useful when you discuss this issue with your family.

You may also be interested to read some of the research in the area of Boys Learning.

October 2012 report on the real benefits of single-sex over co-ed after reviewing schooling options in Seoul

Single sex schooling USA lobby group discusses the findings from the article published in Demography in October 2012

Submission by Dr Peter West, University of Western Sydney to The Inquiry into the Education of Boys

Boys - Getting it Right - Report on the Inquiry into the Education of Boys in Australia, House of Representatives, Standing Committee on Education & Training

Why are boys failing? (USA)