What can teachers and other professionals do to create a more gender free environment in our schools?

So she doesn't follow stereotypes then, lots of people don't, it's not gender non conformity, it's being an actual free thinking human.

If I get the language wrong here, I apologise

I personally think we are heading down a path where telling someone you are a boy/girl, man/ woman will be a matter of shame - which is extremely sad and beyond ridiculous.

Stereotypes need to be squished but that doesnt mean removing all elements of gender!!

Growing up, I was allowed to wear what I wanted (within reason!) - so when I was little, my favourite colours were blue and green. My favourite t shirt had a tractor on it. I lived in dungerees and hated dresses. Was this an issue? No! Was I ever told I looked like a boy? No! I played with car garages and also had barbies. I had baby dolls but also played with a tool bench and stomped in the mud puddles and made mud pies. I also had some pink clothes. I was never told "girls cant play cars....you should wear dresses.....those trainers are for boys.....(blue power rangers!") And I think if more people did this the problems would start to dissappear.

I was never told that any job was just for men or for woman, at home or at school.

When it comes to uniform, I dont see a problem with one big list. What I worry however is that any girl who chooses to wear a skirt will be shamed for "offending" and suddenly anyone who is "stereotypical" of their gender will be victimised, despite making their own choices. When will everyone be happy???? When all boys and men wear skirts and all girls and women are in trousers?

Sex ed from my experience was always done as a whole class anyway and tbh hust factual. Lots of cringey videos with naked people. But I also am really pleased that a teacher held little sessions in primary school for girls to do with menstrual related issues. There was a similar one for boys. I had no mum and really needed these sessions and a chance to ask daft questions with people who are going to go through the same thing. Im sorry this is not PC but there are biological differences and these have to be catered for. There are not truly that many children with GD that every child across the nation needs to be deprived from some beneficial segrigation. Even if a young boy is suffering from GD and believes they are a girl, they wont be going through the menstrual cycle or the same issues at puberty.

Uni sex toilets would have really troubled me. Give the option of both if you really have to but gees I think both sexes /genders need their own space.

At my nursery, we start them young. We dont care if the boys dress up as princesses and teach them not to care. We learn about occupations and teach that everyone can. But who cares if they dress to a certain stereotype?

I often wonder how many of us are just creating issues that wouldnt be there otherwise. I think bringing up gender neutral and then "choosing your gender" based on whatever you like or feel like actually just completely reinforces stereotypes. And we are in for an even more stretched mental health service as all these children grow up and dont know what or who the hell they are.

OR you know, we could tackle removing the gender sterotypes rather than removing genders?

Yy noblegiraffe it's like the classic 'I don't see colour'. We need to see sex and colour in order to respond to the struggles particular groups face.

Eg. A blanket ban on going to the toilet during lessons is 'equal' but also discriminatory towards girls who may need to change sanitary pads.
A blanket ban on wigs is 'equal' but is discriminatory against black girls particularly those who cannot afford regular hairstyling. (This is a battle I and other staff are fighting at my school right now)

OP you haven’t responded to my earlier comment that if we ignore sex in school, then we cannot tackle educational issues that affect each sex, like poor literacy rates for boys, or lack of STEM take-up for girls.

You cannot tackle these simply by having teachers treating pupils the same, because society doesn’t treat them the same. And the pupils themselves definitely don’t treat each other the same.

Oh fgs. I cackled my head off at your suggestions OP.

Girls do better in all girls schools .
Is that cos they pretend they aren't girls? Because the girls are there precisely because they are girls.

The differences are that they see girls as deserving of a decent range of sports and a proper pe teacher . If a teacher needs sone muscle there's no boys to ask. They aren't worrying about changing tampons with a boy in the next cubicle.

You can't he treated as a second rate citizen if the first rate ones aren't there. The behavioural expectations are the same for everyone. The academic and STEM take up expectations are higher .

None of that was achieved by pretending that girls don't exist. And when you refuse to look at sex when checking your results etc then how can you ensure that you recognise if boys or girls are failing in some way. Or if the girls aren't feeling safe.

If your child is using the boys toilets how are periods being dealt with? There won’t be bins in the boys.

Fully agree sea
Gender neutral and unisex is always "default male"

It ignores the challenges girls face and why they face then .

We need to teach them that you are a girl but you can still do Xyz.

Not- you can only achieve Xyz if we pretend you arent a girl.

I see this thread is fallng into the trap of using the words sex and gender interchangeably.

If people want staff to challenge gender stereotypes in mixed-sex schools, at least let’s get the language right.

I think your way of thinking is dangerous .
A gender non conforming girl is still, biologically and a matter of fact , a girl .
To play into and feed some sort of fantasy that she isn't a girl is going to further promote the idea that there is something intrinsically wrong and shameful with being a girl . That's what this whole agenda does and that's why I believe the whole gender neutral cult is based on deep rooted misogyny . It does nothing to tackle gender stereotypes ; it reinforces them .

What a strange society we seem to be living in nowadays. Have you thought about the long term impact this could have on children? If every child today decides to be gender neutral and desexed then how do you see the future of humanity? It would end pretty quickly. There is nothing 'wrong' with being a girl or a boy. Society now seems to be encouraging people to look inwards to such a huge extent that we are failing to see outwards (eg how do I feel? What should I think?). The main gel that holds society together is teamwork. To encourage people to be self obsessed is bad for society in the long run. How about teaching basic values and manners to your child, instead of obsessing over how 'unfair' life obviously is for them because they were born with particular genitals. It's a bizarre modern phenomenon that will negatively impact the children today for years to come. Did you read the thread the other day asking people if they would've changed gender had they been growing up nowadays? Most people said yes they would. But then they grew up and realised they wouldn't after all. My partner said he went through a stage of believing he was a robot when he was young. Should this have been encouraged? He could've had his genitals cut off by now going by today's standards. Start encouraging your child to look outwards. The prime example of 'inward looking' is that of the mindset of a teenager. Do we really need an entire society made up of teenage minds? How do you think this encouragement of gender neutral is progressing humanity?

Unisex toilets would have been a disaster in my school! Some of us were filled with teenage hormone induced lust, I can think of a few groups who would have spent all the time shagging in the loos if they were open to all. (All though the changing rooms were also popular for this because the girls/boys rooms were separated by an unlocked interconnecting door.

Point taken on the hormone/brain point, also yes if boys want to wear dresses and skirts too which is what I meant with regard to a single uniform list. As a health professional I agree with promoting dignity and am passionate in promoting it at work but I don't understand the need for unisex toilets.

But males and females are different with hormones that govern certain characteristics, I agree all children should be allowed to reach their full potential regardless of sex, so more emphasis on encouraging sports as a unisex activity and enabling girls to see that they can have careers in STEM.

I don't expect this to be down to teachers, I teach my children to aim for whatever they want and try to help them see that because you are a girl/boy does not mean you can't do xyz. I however would not like unisex toilets and would fight against this, my DD feels very self conscious as her body is changing and I don't think going into a toilet with boys would help when she has her period, I would hate this. We have not yet come far enough for this to be a safe option.

We do need to be more inclusive, accepting and challenging about stereotyping but not at the risk of safety. Regarding uniform yes one generic list would be good but, I do think girls should be allowed to wear skirts/dresses pretty shoes if they choose, this choice seems to me as Important as allowing people to be GNC.

Teaching sex education surely is factual as biology does not change I don't see the issue with this one but happy for someone to explain this further.
Whilst I am on this I work as a health professional so should we also have mixed sex wards again?

If you could show a gender free environment did support learning and pupils achieving their potential, I would be all for it.

However, education should be evidence based, not based on dogma. It would be a huge experiment on children.

And what does not gender based mean? Does it mean assuming ‘girl’s’ modes of learning are the correct unisex way or ‘boy’s’ (note the inverted commas). Do you try to look for ways to make Physics appeal to girls (less examples based on cars and rockets) or do you assume both sexes should be equally interested. Do you allow both sexes to barrel around the playground or pander to the health and safety lobby?

The idea that gender is purely a social construct is just a theory with which many neurologists disagree. I think schools should do whatever they believe produces the best outcomes.

Sounds to me you want to get rid of the idea that there are two sexes??

I think its simple really, allow children to flourish be always reinforcing that they can achieve and do anything - there are no limits because of sex differences. Promote that fem/masc traits are all ok in either girls or boys . Parents start from baby / toddler stages by not putting girls in pretty but activity restricting clothes and giving boys more opprtunity to play dress up etc