As part of President Bush’s plan to reform America’s school system, the Education Department will be pushing for the creation of single-sex public schools. Only 11 such schools exist nationwide currently, but the Department’s proposal to reinterpret the civil rights statute for education, known as Title IX, could pave the way for many more to be built in the future.

Supporters of single-sex schools argue that discipline and learning are made easier when students don’t have the distraction of the presence of the opposite sex. Critics argue that single-sex schools are ineffective, and that their creation could divert resources that would make the education system as a whole better. There are still lingering concerns that an all-boys schools may be given more resources and deliver a better education than an all-girls school — the same concerns that frequently have led to lawsuits filed under Title IX that have shit down many single-sex schools.

This hour, we look at the issue of same sex schools. Are they part of the solution to America’s public education problems?

Guests:

Rosemary Salomone, law professor at St. John’s University in Queens, NY, author of the forthcoming book “Same, Different, Equal: Rethinking Single Sex Schooling”

Benjamin Wright, Principal of Thurgood Marshall Elementary School in Seattle

Maryam Zohny, senior at The Young Women’s Leadership School in Harlem, will attend Columbia University next year.