Office of the Superintendent

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ALICE JAMIESON GIRLS ACADEMYGrades 4-9

• The Calgary Board of Education
• Educating Tomorrows Citizens Today

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WHO IS ALICE JAMIESON?

• the first woman in Canada appointed to a court
• judge of the juvenile court in Calgary
• appointed magistrate of the women's court
• instrumental in success of the Persons case
• a member of the Calgary Council of Women
• active in the development of the YWCA
• an excellent role model of the academic,
  organizational and leadership skills this
  alternative program promotes

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Why Single-Sex Schooling?

• Not for the traditional or historical reasons of
  segregating the sexes to learn stereotypical
  roles, or to ensure class privilege through
  homogeneous grouping
• but because recent(90s) brain-based research
  reports
• girls and boys brains are physiologically
  different therefore they think differently.
• these research findings support previous research
  that claimed that the genders learn differently.

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Brain-based Research Findings

• Brain differences are best understood as a
  spectrum
• There are bridge-brained children of both
  genders
• Attention to brain-based gender differences
  optimizes childrens natural learning abilities
• Differences are not evidence of gender superiority

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Developmental Differences

• Female brain develops more quickly
• Corpus Callosum is up to 20 larger in females
• Females have more development in the frontal
  lobes which regulate emotions and decision-making
• Females take in more sensory data than males
• Females tend to have better verbal abilities

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Brain Chemical Differences

• Female brain secretes more serotonin making them
  more empathic
• Female growth hormone, progesterone, makes
  bonding a primary goal for girls
• Females manage social bonds through egalitarian
  alliances
• Female brain secretes oxytocin during stress
  causing females to tend to children and gather in
  friends. Estrogen enhances this calming response.

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Based on recent research, single-sex programs
have been initiated. What have we learned?

• Recent pilot projects of all girls programs in
  the U.S. have been thoroughly studied (Datnow
  2001) and the researchers state their findings
  for public systems considering this alternative
  program. A recent report from Australia (Martin
  2002) regarding the educational outcomes of boys
  echoes the primary recommendations of the Datnow
  report.
• The authors from these reports recommend that
  strategies to improve girls and boys outcomes
  fall under a gender equity framework.

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What is a Gender Equity Framework?A Gender
Equity Framework includes

• explicit modeling of equity principles
• accommodation of specific learning needs
• student ownership in policy and procedures
• celebration of academic excellence and personal
  best
• mentorships
• an understanding of biological and social
  construction of gender
• an emphasis on independence, empowerment, and
  leadership.

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Purpose of an All Girls Program
Utilizing the gender equity framework as a
filter, the girls in this program will develop
academic, leadership and collaborative skills for
success in their personal life, educational
endeavours, and career pathways.
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The issues for girls are

• Girls beliefs about their leadership capacity
• Participation diminishes in co-educational
  classrooms with the onset of adolescence
• Curriculum materials seldom present women as
  contributing citizens
• Representation in math, science, and technology
  courses in post-secondary and careers diminishes

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What is the Alice Jamieson Academy going to offer
your daughter?

• Since our philosophy for learning is for the
  optimal learning experience for girls, this
  program will be able to offer an experience for
  learning which is catered to their needs
• This is not going to be just school, it will be a
  new way of learning and living

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Girls preferences for learning

• Cooperative learning
• Relationship-based curriculum
• Personal growth paths
• Verbal/Linguistic Communication

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Targeted Initiatives for the Program
Facilitate empowerment leadership
Celebrate academic mastery
Emphasize Cooperative learning
Encourage mentorships with female adults
Increase access to sciences technology
Personal growth, personal best
Develop post program pathways
Create an Optimistic culture
Explore social construction of gender
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How is our program going to be different?

• Offering mentorship opportunities so that the
  students can form relationships with women with
  careers in similar areas of interest
• Providing an environment where girls can take on
  leadership roles
• Offering teachers who are passionate about the
  learning of females and a program which is best
  suited for her needs

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An Invitation

• The feasibility committee developed a collective
  dream of the best educational setting for girls.
  We invite you to be part of the realization of
  that dream.
• Any unanswered questions can be addressed during
  the tour of the school.
• Before leaving tonight, please be sure to sign
  our guest book. It will be another of the
  historical artifacts of Stanley Jones School.
• Thank you for joining us tonight.