Comparative evaluation of the academic performance of single sex and co-educational secondary school students in Ibadan, South West Nigeria

Abstract

This study compared the performance levels of students of single-sex schools against coeducational schools at the end of the third year of senior secondary education in Ibadan, South West Nigeria. Three hypotheses were tested using primary data gathered from Multilevel analysis which was carried out on a sample of approximately 300 secondary school students divided into 150 for single sex schools and 150 for co-educational schools, and secondary data from the West African school Certificate examination for the selected schools for year 2008 and 2009.. The results indicate that there is a significant difference between the academic performances of the students of co-educational schools and single sex schools, with the students in the single-sex secondary schools performing better than their counterparts in coeducational schools. Results were however not significantly different for gender-based evaluation of academic performances of the schooling types. The study therefore recommends that students irrespective of the schooling types in which they might find themselves be given equal opportunities and encouraged to attain excellence.