Testimonials from Co-ed School Students

Why these students love their co-educational experience

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For these students and alumni, co-ed schools were the right step on their educational path. Find out why in the following testimonials.

Preparing for the future

Giuliana Guarna enjoys being busy. And MPS Etobicoke, the coed school she attends just outside of Toronto, Ontario provides countless activities to satisfy her diverse interests. The Grade 11 student sings in the jazz band, plays the violin, performs in school plays, belongs to the Healthy Cooking Club, swims and plays soccer and basketball. She felt something was missing, though, so Giuliana started a bowling club, too. “They give us a lot of freedom to start clubs here,” she says.

Happy attending a coed school, she adds, “It prepares you for the future, because you’re going to have to work with both males and females.”

Taranvir Sandhu, a Grade 10 student, enjoys the friendly atmosphere at MPS Etobicoke. He attended public school through to Grade 6, but his parents worried because he was angry and had trouble making friends at the big school. When Taranvir transferred to the private school, he fit in quickly, thanks in part to the many sports teams and smaller classes. “I made friends right away,” he says. “I really like how it’s a big family here.”

—Annette Bourdeau

The Value of Learning

When Olivia, an 18-year-old student at Mentor College in Mississauga, Ontario, graduated from high school this year, she'll left with a well-rounded perspective on the value of learning in a coed environment. For most of the time, Margie has attended coed school but she did spend two years at an all-girls separate Catholic school, in Grades 9 and 10. Looking back, Olivia is grateful for being exposed to the unique dynamic that boys bring to the school setting.

"Boys bring a different flavour to the classroom. Like one time in English last year, we read a book with a feminist aspect to it, and it was interesting to hear their take on it," Olivia says. Coed learning has also benefited Olivia academically: a fan of the sciences, she's says these classes are more intense and engaging due to the presence of boys.

"They bring a greater sense of focus to science, which makes the classes more academically competitive," she says.

For Adrienne Margie, Olivia's mom, the main benefit comes from knowing her daughter will enter post-secondary school well prepared to relate to all her peers.

"I wanted Olivia to have some normalcy in her education, and boys are part of our world. I think when she graduates, this will give her an edge."

—Sharon Aschaiek

A real world with boys and girls

Connor Smith and Tsilala Graham-Haynes are best friends. The Grade 12 students met while attending Nancy Campbell Collegiate Institute in London, Ontario. “When I’m with the guys, I sometimes feel like I have to behave like a stereotypical guy, but when I’m with Tsilala, I can be me. I can be real,” says Connor. “She is someone I can have arguments with, someone I can disagree with on certain issues, but still be best friends.”

At Nancy Campbell, single-gender residences mean students live in an all-boys’ or all-girls’ environment, but the students spend their days in coed classes. “When I was in Grade 2, I went to an all-girls’ school, but my mom said I wouldn’t be able to handle the real world if I continued in that type of environment, so she put me into a coed school,” explains Tsilala, who is from Bermuda.

For Hoda Ghadirian, a teacher at Nancy Campbell, the focus on creating global citizens who know how to collaborate in solving problems goes hand in hand with coeducation.

“Diversity—in terms of age, gender and cultural background—is valued at our school,” Ghadirian says.

With a focus on graduating confident and competent students who will have a positive impact on society, Nancy Campbell embraces the coeducational environment. “When we work in groups, girls and boys tend to bring very different things to projects,” says Tsilala. “Girls find all the different realities that they can try and boys look at things from a straightforward perspective. We learn a lot by working together.”

Boys and girls working together

While experts agree that there are problems with coeducation, many feel that improving a mixed education is preferable to separating students by gender. To learn more, click here.

“At some point, likely in university, boys and girls will return to a coed environment and they need to know how to get along and work together,” says Paula Bourne, a Senior Research Associate at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education at the University of Toronto. “It is very important that boys learn to listen to and respect the intellect of girls and that girls feel comfortable speaking up in front of boys.”

-Hailey Eisen

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