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See also Benefits of Boarding, and news article of February 07
What are the advantages of boys-only schools?
The Headmaster writes:
 “The fact that boys in boys-only schools out-perform boys in co-educational schools is reaffirmed by a glance at League Tables. At Merchiston we must be careful not to read too much into this. It is a simplistic view that Merchiston is academically strong because it is single-sex, but boys, especially those with a difficult adolescence, can thrive in the all-boy environment. They can all be boys together. There is no need to cut a figure or make a hit with the girls. Boys need not be high jacked by a laddish culture and the boys have, and are prepared to allow themselves to follow, those instincts which are not obviously macho. It is a pleasing paradox that a popular image of this School may be the rugby-playing athlete, but the reality is that there are greater opportunities for boys to express themselves artistically than in a co-educational school.”
“Another benefit of Merchiston’s boys-only policy is that time is regularly set aside each term to meet pupils from our sister schools. This allows pupils to focus on study for most of the time, but they also have plenty of opportunities to socialise. In particular Merchiston enjoys close ties with St George’s School for Girls and St Margaret’s School for Girls in Edinburgh and Kilgraston School in Perthshire. This wide-ranging contact covers curricular, extra-curricular and social links.”
Listed below are some of the reasons why many parents choose single-sex schools for their sons and daughters:
• The best exam results tend to come from single-sex schools.
• Boys approach their learning in a different way to girls and are therefore best taught separately. Research shows that boys and girls react quite differently to classroom discipline, long-term coursework assignments and examinations.
• There is less gender stereotyping. In co-educational schools boys are much less likely to opt for subjects which are traditional strengths of girls, such as English and French, and girls are less likely to opt for Physics or Chemistry. 
• Boys are often short on self-confidence during teenage years and worry about their ability to cope with conflicting pressures. They respond well to direct teaching to work on short-term objectives and explicit guidelines.
• Some teenage boys feel that they cannot outperform girls in some subjects and this fear of perceived failure has a negative effect on their self esteem.
• Boys and girls are less self-conscious if educated in single-sex schools. Boys are more likely to participate in activities which might otherwise embarrass them. There are greater opportunities for boys to express themselves artistically, and boys can follow a diverse range of interests and talents in the artistic sphere of such pursuits as music and drama.
• Boys and girls can be overly aware of their appearance when they are adolescents. This pressure is reduced in a single-sex environment.
• Starting at the adolescence stage, the girlfriend/boyfriend factor can become more than just a minor distraction, and can be detrimental to academic progress.
• The ‘laddish’ or ‘macho’ culture, now promoted through teenage magazines and other sources, has become an increasingly adverse influence on boys. Central to this culture is a rebellious, anti-learning attitude which means it is simply ‘not cool’ to show a real interest in academic work. This ‘macho culture’ seems to be more in evidence in co-educational schools: without the girls, the boys seem far less likely to succumb.
• Team sport is usually stronger in single-sex schools.
• All single-sex schools arrange plenty of joint activities with sister and other girl’s schools. Merchiston’s wide-ranging contact covers curricular, extra-curricular and social links. Also, the fact that Merchiston is based in a city, rather than country, means that in a variety of ways the boys have regular contact with girls – their lifestyle, therefore, is a natural and normal one.
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