Separation anxiety

In late October, the U.S. Department of Education announced plans to give the “separate but equal” doctrine a second chance in the form of sweeping changes to Title IX regulations. Title IX – the landmark legislation requiring schools to provide equal opportunities for males and females – forbade public schools from offering single-sex classes except under specific circumstances like sex-ed and physical education. However, new regulations will allow for the sorting of students into separate classes, or even schools, for reasons as vague as improving students’ educational achievement.