nephew noticed here recently that in his computer science class GCSE there was just one girl among 29 boys. When I asked him why he thought that was, he replied that he saw nothing unusual - in his computer science opinion was simply a matter "for boys".
This, and a recent visit to a mixed London and a girls' school, the same day showed me that many of my assumptions about what was good for the girls were totally wrong.
Far from being places of equal opportunities and preparation for the real world, even the best co-educational schools will celebrate the achievements of girls. Worse, girls continually struggle to make their voices heard rowdy boys cuddle. The girls' school I visited, by comparison, was done a much better job of overcoming gender stereotypes associated with STEM subjects.
It was a temple dedicated to women's success and hallways were festooned with images of high-performing women. The school surrounds her daughters with photos of women parliamentarians, scientists and entrepreneurs. Consequently, girls who attend are more likely to see themselves as future leaders.
In an all-female environment there is no reason to assume that subjects have sex: the computer classes and science are all full of girls. It is not improper for a woman to represent itself as a chemist, a prime minister, or perhaps both.
The second school I visited was co-educational. As a product of this type of school myself, I had always believed that the mixed system was better for girls: sharing classes with boys is supposed to toughen us up for some struggles ahead.
Part of this is true - sex schools are filled with real-world problems - most noticeably in the girls feel the same kind of pressure between the sexes that women in working life. When girls are among the boys feel more compelled to be feminine - often without realizing it.
These stereotypes hamper girls' achievements. Girls-sex schools are almost two and half times more likely to study physics at a level that girls attending mixed schools. The number of girls studying IT at A-Level this year was further reduced to a level already dismally low 297-245, a bit less than 6.5% of the total number of students taking the subject.
co-educational schools show a kind of involuntary systematic bias. They teach a science program and history that focuses primarily on the achievements of remarkable men. There are relatively few female characters in textbooks - women only represent 27% of all central characters.
This reflects the sad truth that for most of history, women have been relatively powerless and unimportant. No wonder that girls leave school with the idea that high yield is not for them.
One could argue that the only school teaches girls a skewed version of history by over-emphasizing the contributions of women, but the reality is that history has created its own sexism.
The last thing a 13-year self-consciousness needs a skewed view of the world, we need to celebrate the few heroines who already exist, and discover those that history has overlooked.
I can not help thinking about that lonely girl in the computer classroom of my nephew. I guess she must be brave and determined to study computer. It can not be easy being the only girl in the class.
Many girls would do what she chose, but social pressure and competition with the boys means that very few girls have the courage to follow their vocation, especially if they are interested in the topics "geek".
Girls-school students are simply better than him on one point: they are free to choose to study what they want without anyone forcing them to conform to traditional roles. There are no boys (like my nephew) to inform innocently she's in the wrong class.
It seems ironic that the best way to eliminate this gender bias in education is to separate our children. But this is just a quick fix - we must work much harder to eliminate this type of bias and celebrating female heroes in our mixed schools. The girls will be able to get a chance in life when the boys they study with them as equals, and we're not there yet.
Belinda Parmar is the founder of social enterprise Little Miss Geek campaigning for tech pioneers celebrate women
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