Centuries ago, Plato used to teach boys and girls in the same class, insisting that there was no difference between the intellectual capabilities of the sexes. In Britain, co-educational schools were already quite common in the late 19th century while, today, only 400 single-sex State schools remain in the UK.

So why is it that here we are still debating the merits of co-education when there are more serious educational issues that cry for immediate action if we are to give our young people the tools they need to succeed in life?

The announcement made by the Ministry of Education that “girls and boys attending State schools will sit side by side in all Form 1 classrooms from next scholastic year” seems to have upset the Malta Union of Teachers.

In reaction, union president Kevin Bonello said that “since this reform was of paramount importance and was going to change the physiognomy and the whole educational culture once for all, there should have been at least a serious evaluation of the pilot project before taking a definitive decision”.

To some observers of the economic, social and educational scenes, this reaction sounds like another attempt not to undertake necessary reforms to improve the services provided by the State with taxpayers’ money. They will argue that it is only through having a sharp sense of urgency that we can bring about reforms that will improve the achievement levels of young people and the economic prospects of the country.

So far, little has been heard from parents about whether they prefer their children to go to co-educational schools or to single-sex schools. A study conducted by Alan Smithers, professor of education at Buckingham University, “found no advantages or disadvantages for single-sex schools”. However, it is a fact that “parents tend to want girls to go to single-sex schools but boys to go to mixed ones”. So, yes, it is a difficult circle to square.

Co-education is quite prevalent in private independent schools in this country, even if this system is ‘generally shunned by Church schools’.

Like every other system, one will find advantages as well as disadvantages linked to co-educational school systems.

What is more surprising and even frustrating is the belief that we can go on debating what system to adopt as though we can afford to leave educational reform on the back-burner forever.

The syndrome that makes policymakers, trade unions and workers in the public sector fear change is possibly one of the most dangerous risks that the country is facing to modernise its public sector. While policymakers should engage in proper consultation before implementing changes in the way public services in education and health should be delivered, unions must not expect to keep debating proposed changes ad infinitum, perhaps hoping that, in the end, workers will be as little affected by change as possible. Of course, workers should not be inconvenienced unnecessarily but certain reforms must be made.

The fact that co-education is prevalent in most countries is a clear indication that there is nothing intrinsically wrong in it.

However, what is even more important is that we manage to discover the reasons behind the shameful achievement levels of a significant number of students who then struggle to find employment in the modern economy.

Some genuinely, but wrongly, believe that, as a nation, we are a special case and that we can afford to re-invent the wheel in everything we do. Our eternal bickering on public service reform, including in education, is just one symptom of this debilitating mindset.