Private boys’ secondary schools in Tasmania
Published August 2021
There are over 100 secondary and combined private boys' schools in Australia. Most of these schools are in Victoria, Queensland and New South Wales, with over 20 schools in each state.
For the purpose of this article, ‘private’ schools refer to non-government schools – both Independent and Catholic.
There are two private secondary and combined all-boys schools in Tasmania, which we have listed below.
Private boys’ secondary schools in Hobart
Both secondary and combined boys’ schools are located in Hobart:
- St Virgil's College — Austins Ferry
- The Hutchins School — Sandy Bay
Search all secondary and combined schools in Hobart here.
Why choose single-sex education?
Your decision may be based on factors such as family tradition, desire to have your child educated in a particular faith or context, or the academic performance of a school.
Researchers continue to examine the benefits and drawbacks of single-sex and co-ed schooling. Overall, there is no conclusive evidence to decide which environment is better and for whom. Recent years have seen a number of single-sex schools convert to a co-educational system — in some cases, this is because it allows schools to provide more academic and co-curricular options for their students.
Advantages and disadvantages of an all-boys education
One of the main arguments presented for single-sex schooling is that they may be able to cater better to the different learning styles of either boys or girls. This follows a widespread belief that the academic learning styles, interests and maturity levels differ between girls and boys (and at varying ages).
Many schools have recently made the transition to co-education have maintained single-sex academic classes. For example, some have mostly single-sex classes, but allow boys and girls to socialise in the school grounds. Some have single-sex classes (and even campuses) in middle years (often from ages 12–15) and mixed classes in senior years. Some schools believe that this method allows girls to achieve better results in subjects that boys typically outperform them (such as science and mathematics), and vice-versa.
Depending on where you are located and the size of the school you are considering, disadvantages of an all-boys education may include more limited subject choice, socialisation among genders, co-curricular programs and choice of school. Cost may also be a factor — while single-sex schools can be found across the Independent, Catholic and government sectors, schools are more typically Independent or Catholic.
