ReadthefollowingpassageandmarktheletterA,B, C,orD onyouranswersheettoindicatethecorrectanswertoeachofthe questions.

Inearlycivilizations,citizenswereeducatedinformally,usuallywithinthe familyunit.Educationmeantsimplylearningtolive.Ascivilizationsbecame morecomplex,however,educationbecamemoreformal,structuredand comprehensive.InitialeffortsoftheancientChineseandGreeksocieties concentratedsolelyontheeducationofmales.Thepost-BabylonianJewsand Platowereexceptionstothispattern.Platowasapparentlythefirstsignificant advocateoftheequalityofthesexes.Women,inhisidealstate,wouldhavethe samerightsanddutiesandthesameeducationalopportunitiesasmen.This aspectof Platonicphilosophy,however,had littleornoeffecton education for manycenturies,andtheconceptofaliberaleducationformenonly,whichhad been espoused by Aristotle, prevailed.

InancientRome,theavailabilityofaneducationwasgraduallyextendedto women,buttheyweretaughtseparatelyfrommen.TheearlyChristiansand medievalEuropeanscontinuedthistrend,andsinglesexschoolsforthe privilegedclassesprevailedthroughtheReformationperiod.Gradually, however,educationforwomenonaseparatebutequalbasistothatprovided formenwasbecomingaclearresponsibilityofsociety.MartinLutherappealed for civilsupport of schools for all children. At the Council of Trent in the 16th century,theRomanCatholicChurchencouragedtheestablishmentoffree primaryschoolsforchildrenofallclasses.Theconceptofuniversalprimaryeducation,regardlessofsex,hadbeenborn,butitwasstillintherealmofthe single-sexschool.

Inthelate19thandearly20thcenturies,co-educationbecameamorewidely appliedprincipleofeducationalphilosophy.InBritain,Germany,andthe SovietUniontheeducationofboysandgirlsinthesameclassesbecamean acceptedpractice.SinceWorldWarII,JapanandtheScandinaviancountries havealsoadoptedrelativelyuniversalco-educationalsystems.Thegreatest negativereactiontocoeducationhasbeenfeltintheteachingsystemsofthe Latincountries,wherethesexeshaveusuallybeenseparatedatbothprimary and secondary levels, according to local conditions.

Anumberofstudieshaveindicatedthatgirlsseemtoperformbetteroverall andinscienceinparticularinsingle-sexclasses:duringtheadolescentyears, pressuretoconformtostereotypicalfemalegenderrolesmaydisadvantagegirls intraditionallymalesubjects,makingthemreluctanttovolunteerfor experimentalworkwhiletakingpartinlessons.InBritain,academicleague tablespointtohighstandardsachievedingirls'schools.Someeducationalists thereforesuggestsegregationofthesexesasagoodthing,particularlyincertain areas, and a number of schools are experimenting withthe idea.

The word "assigned" in the fourth paragraph mostly means