Boys' schools arethe perfect place to teach young men to express their emotions and are morelikely to get involved in activities such as art,dance and music,according to

research releasedtoday.

Far from thetraditional image of a culture of aggressive masculinity,the absence of girlsgives boys the chance to develop without pressure to conform to astereotype,the

U.S. study says.

Boys at single-sexschools were said to be more likely to get involved in cultural and artisticactivities that helped develop their emotional expressiveness,rather thanfeeling

they had to conformto the "boy code" of hiding their emotions to be a "realman".

The report,presentedat a conference of the International Boys' Schools Coalition in London attended by theheads of private and state schools,goes against received wisdom

that boys do betterwhen taught alongside girls.

The headmaster of Eton,Tony Little,warned that boys were being failed bythe British education system because it had become too focused on girls.Hecriticised teachers for

failing to recognisethat boys are actually more emotional than girls,despite the fact thatgirls"turn on the waterworks".

The research arguedthat boys often perform badly in mixed schools because they become demoralisedwhen their female counterparts do better earlier in verbal skills and

reading,because theleft side of the brain develops faster in girls.They also felt they had tobe"cool"rather than studious.

But in single-sexschools teachers are able to tailor lessons to boys' learning style,lettingthem move around the classroom and getting them to compete in teams to prevent

boredom,wrote thestudy's author,education expert Abigail James,of the University of Virginia.

Teachers couldencourage boys to enjoy reading and writing withspecifically"boy-focused" approaches such as themes and charactersthat appeal to them. Because,the

researchers say,boysgenerally have better spatial skills,more acute vision,learn best throughtouch,are more impulsive and more physically active,they need to be given

"hands-on"lessons where they are allowed to walk around." Boys in mixed schools viewclassical music as feminine and prefer the modern genre in which violence and

sexism are majorthemes,"James wrote.

Single-sex educationalso made it less likely that boys would feel they had to conform to astereotype gained from the media by girls that men should be "masterfuland in

charge" inrelationships. "in the present sexualised atmosphere prevalent in mnixedschools,boys feel coerced into acting like men before they understand themselveswell

enough to know whatthat means,"the report said.According to Abigail James,one of the advantages of single-sex schools is________.

A.teaching can be tailored to suit the characteristics of boys

B.boys can focus on their lessons without being distracted

C.boys can choose to learn whatever they are interested in

D.teaching can be designed to promote boys' team spirit