这里是美国之音慢速英语教育报道。
Should girls go to school only with other girls? Is it better for boys to attend all boys schools? Educators at school for girls in Washington D.C. believe children in classes of the same sex do better, but other experts say there is no real evidence to support that idea. They believe there are other more important things that make a school effective.
女孩应该上女校？男孩上男校更好？华盛顿女校的教育工作者认为，同性班级的孩子表现更好。但其他专家表示，没有确凿证据可以支持这一理论。他们相信还有其它更重要的东西使得一所学校更有效率。
Excel Academy is the first all-girl school in Washington, D.C. that is independently operated and supported by taxpayers. It was established in 2007 and opened its doors in 2008.
卓越私立学校是华盛顿特区第一所由纳税人独立运作和支持的女校。该校始建于2007年，2008年开始招生。
One of its students is Anyreah Clavijo who is 10 years old. Anyreah attended kindergarten in a classroom with boys. She says boys have different interests than girls. She has now been at Excel for the last five years and praises it.
10岁的Anyreah Clavijo是该校学生之一。Anyreah和男生一起就读了幼儿园。她说，男孩和女孩的兴趣不同。她现在在卓越学校上后面的五年，并对该校赞不绝口。
"They would like support me and tell me that I can do it. They make me feel like I'm loved and that I'm the smartest person in the world," Anyreah said.
她说，“她们会支持我，告诉我我可以做到这点。她们让我感觉被爱，让我感觉我是世界上最聪明的人。”
The Excel Academy provides free education to children from families without much money. It serves more than 600 girls from preschool, the youngest children to grade five. Three meals are served each day.
卓越学校为来自贫穷家庭的孩子提供免费教育。该校招收了600多名从幼儿园到五年级的女生，并供应每日三餐。
Kaye Savage established the school and leads it as its chief executive officer. She says that when boys and girls are taught together, the teachers teach for the boys. She says boys are a little louder and much more active than the girls. In her opinion that makes girls second-class citizens in their own classrooms and schools.
凯·萨维奇（Kaye Savage）建立了这所学校并自任执行总裁。她说，当男孩和女孩一起受教育时，老师们为男孩教学。她说，男孩比女孩声音更响亮，更活跃。她认为这使得女孩在教室和学校里成为二等公民。
But Galen Sherwin at the American Civil Liberties Union, the ACLU, disagrees. She says the ACLU thinks that the evidence, in her words, is not really there to support claims that same sex classrooms produce better results.
但美国民权联盟的盖伦·宣威（Galen Sherwin）对此不认同。她说，美国民权联盟认为，用她的话说就是，并没有证据支持所谓的同性班级能产生更好的结果。
"Similarities between boys and girls are much greater and more relevant than any differences. Certainly any differences that exist are not relevant from an educational standpoint," Sherwin said.
宣威说，“男女生之间的共性很大，且比任何差异都更具价值。当然从教育角度来说，男女生之间存在的任何差异不具价值。”
Elaine Weiss is an education expert at the Economic Policy Institute. She believes other considerations besides same sex classes have a bigger effect on children success in school.
伊莱恩·魏斯（Elaine Weiss）是美国经济政策研究所的一位教育专家。她认为，性别之外的其它因素对孩子在学校取得成功具有更大的作用。
Ms. Weiss says everything that happens in children's early development is important. This includes how their mother's age and felt during pregnancy, and she asks did the child attend a pre-kindergarten program to help get ready for school.
魏斯女士说，儿童早期发育时期发生的一切都非常重要。其中包括他们母亲怀孕期间的年龄和感受。她还询问孩子上学前班课程是否能帮助学生做好入学准备。
"They start for example in pre-school, so they're addressing some of that early gap before kids get to kindergarten. They keep their classes relatively small, so that teachers can have a one-on-one conversation and interaction with students. They have enriching after-school opportunities," Weiss said.
魏斯说，“例如他们从学前教育开始，就能解决孩子上幼儿园之前的一些早期差距。他们保持班级规模不大，这样老师就能和学生们一对一交流和互动。他们丰富了课余的机会。”
And Anyreah Clavijo is not sure if she will always attend an all-girl program, but she is happy where she is.
Anyreah Clavijo并不确定是否会一直就读女校课程，但她对现状满意。
And that's the VOA Learning English Education Report. I'm Bob Doughty.
以上就是本期美国之音慢速英语教育报道的全部内容。我是鲍勃·道蒂（Bob Doughty）。(51VOA.COM对本文翻译保留全部权利，未经授权请勿转载，违者必究！)