( CNN ) -- One of No Child Left Behind 's controversial initiatives -- support for single-sex public schools and classes -- has come under heavy fire from critics . A common objection is that the programs are based on gender stereotypes : Boys need discipline and should be free to run around the classroom ; girls require gentle care and can be trusted to sit still . Is single-sex public education outdated and backward in this day and age ? Sociologist Michael Kimmel wrote in a CNN.com opinion column that single-sex classrooms in otherwise coeducational schools `` segregate boys and girls . '' It 's a powerful statement . Segregation usually calls to mind racial segregation . In public schools today , black students remain considerably more segregated from white students compared with other racial and ethnic groups . But does separating students along the gender line , as Kimmel claims , do more harm than good ? Separation is not always a form of segregation . Some single-sex schools can do more good than harm . For educators who are looking for a way to address the needs of black boys -- who lag behind their peers on a range of academic and social measures , according to research -- single-sex education is an important tool . Instead of abandoning the option , educators and policymakers should learn from the promising work of some of the schools that serve young black men . An all-male public school can celebrate many different ways of being a young man , freeing students from a straitjacket notion of masculinity . Take Urban Charter , a school that I researched for a year . ( Urban Charter is a pseudonym . Federal guidelines require that its real name be kept confidential . This is a common practice for school-based research involving minors . ) It 's an all-boys high school in a large urban school district on the East Coast . It opened several years ago . Nearly all the boys there are African-American , and a large majority of their families are working-class or poor . Opponents warn that single-sex schools reinforce gender stereotypes . It 's a valid concern . Yet the teachers at Urban Charter actively fought stereotypes , not simply of boys but of black boys . The school staff was well aware of common stereotypes of their young men -- as , say , rappers and basketball players -- and so the school culture nurtured individual interests and passions . At weekly assemblies , the accomplishments of the mock trial team were celebrated alongside those of the basketball team . There was a thriving comic book and anime club , and nearly the entire school turned out for theater productions . Critics also worry that all-boys schools promote a machismo culture and could alienate boys who are gay . Yet a schoolwide commitment to helping young men become gentlemen meant frequent lessons about respecting women and girls . The unique gender composition did not itself make all the difference . The school administration knew this from the start . As the school 's founder said , `` you can make it all boys ; you can separate the boys . That does nothing . Separation gives you an opportunity to work the boys . You 've got to shun the whole boot camp mentality , disciplinary school mentality . '' That opportunity was creating a pro-academic climate with small class sizes and a longer school day . A large budget and buy-in from parents and teachers also helped tremendously . Urban Charter 's accomplishments ca n't be denied . Since 2011 , the school has a near-perfect graduation rate , and over 80 % of the students have gone on to college . Nearly all the boys I interviewed said they did n't want to be anywhere else ( and most had been unhappy when they enrolled ) . They frequently cited the number of caring teachers . Research has shown that single-sex schools serving at-risk youth are likely successful for reasons other than simply separating kids by gender . Yet too often , opponents mischaracterize the claims made by those who support the schools . Certainly , there are many differences among boys and among girls . But parents should have the option to choose between single-sex programs and coeducational options . ( The programs must be completely voluntary , in keeping with 2006 Department of Education guidelines . ) To be sure , proponents have n't always helped their own cause . Some have mistakenly used biological sex differences to justify educating boys and girls separately . But Urban Charter , for example , did n't tout those differences at all . The school instead cited very real , troubling and enduring differences in academic outcomes ( performance in school , graduation rates ) and social outcomes ( exposure to drugs and violence , the likelihood of being incarcerated ) between black boys and their peers . Let 's stop saying that single-sex public education is a form of segregation ; it can empowering . And African-American boys are among those who could benefit the most . The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Freeden Oeur .
Freeden Oeur says support for single-sex public education has come under fire . Oeur : Single-sex classes are a good option in addressing the needs of black boys . He says an all-male school can free students from a narrow idea of masculinity . TL;DR The U.S. Supreme Court is expected to rule on whether schools must allow transgender students. Not all single-sex programs reinforce gender stereotypes .