I am a science teacher teaching secondary sex education and genetics

[Clairetree1]

Ever single time. Every single time. Every single time.

I am being asked how men turn into women.

I say they can't. They turn into transwomen. These are men who change their bodies to be as much like women as possible, but are still men.

Every single time I teach pregnancy I am asked how men can do it.

Every single time we go through genetics I get a shocked response for saying "this is male, this is female"

Every single time I make any distinction between male and female I am asked "are you allowed to say that?

I equate being ordered to teach that men can become woman to previous generations of teachers being ordered to teach nazi race science.

I am quite sure I will be sacked one day

It's only in the last two years I've been hearing this from the kids and last year the question threw me a little as wasn't sure why they brought it up. I now know why. This year with several transgender individuals in the school it makes sense for them to ask the questions. Most kids come across as desperately not wanting to say the wrong thing.

What do these same kids say about lesbians and gay people?

I've also heard kids talking about operations to turn you into a girl.

Wish these kids tv shows would actually he honest about things not fill These kids' heads with rubbish.

Im.mot a teacher obviously. But as a parent I've heard kids on the way to school

Be aware that the more information you supply, as is requested, the more likely it is that jigsaw identification of your school and you can be done by transactivists, from other posts, ad locations on screenshots etc.

I find it entirely plausible that some teachers would have experienced this a lot and others not at all, given that girls transitioning is something that is happening in clusters.
There's nobody at all changing sex at my dcs' schools (rural, northern) unless it is all being kept very secret but a friend's dd in the home counties has several in her guide group and my nephews in a city school joke about it regularly.

Not really surprised at this. There's so much misinformation out there. So many adults genuinely seem to believe that humans are not sexually dimorphic, or that transwomen are actually biologically female.

phlewf Lots of children do have a long list of misconceptions about their bodies, and plenty never 'work it out', given some of the questions that come up on threads here from time to time. Honestly I think lots of primary schools are failing to take SRE lessons seriously and sort out these basic biological facts.

For some reason I'm thinking of the young adult male who wants to keep the tampon tax because it's not everyone's fault if "women have weak bladders".

It's not surprising some children think humans can change sex especially when confronted by constant propaganda that this is true.

The DC have seen the cbbc programme about transkids, they know I disagree with it. I am a biologist and am always very blunt with my children about the difference between sex (biological fact) and gender (the tool of the patriarchy). My eldest is only 10 but is a self identifying tomboy. Hoping my scientific bluntness, her fabulous girl's football team and her lesbian aunty will protect her against any trans ideology she comes across as she gets older.

OP are you real ?

I have always been a lesbian, donkeys years ago had disgusting teachers who were equally ranty at me and my girlfriend ,from age 11

one used to separate us and tell us we would go to hell , we would grow out of it , we would wind them up , hold hands and kiss , once had a lovely long snog in front of our RE teacher , she had the vapours

I saw this one teacher recently , so told her I didn't grow out of it , and neither did my then G/F !

my then G/F became a very good looking man , has a wife and kids
the sky hasn't fallen in

once had a lovely long snog in front of our RE teacher , she had the vapours

Cool story.

Your girlfriend has not become a man. How can we expect kids to know you can't change sex when adults don't.

No idea what schools are doing these days, madness. I had one of mine (teenager) come home quite upset because they had been taught that women can turn into men and vice versa. They honestly thought they could go to bed one night as one sex and wake up as the other - they were utterly horrified at the thought of this happening to them. So I had to explain. I think schools are trying to tick a box with this stuff and are doing it quite badly.

foxyliz26, your girlfriend has had cosmetic changes to their appearance to make them resemble a man.
Humans cannot change sex.

I keep seeing on Twitter the statement that womb transplants will soon be perfected and then trans women will be able to get pregnant. Never sure if this is trolling or unbelievable stupidity.

I've found they really get confused between intersex conditions and gid and the inappropriate use of the term hermaphrodite. Problem is it's such a controversial subject that the kids don't want to ask the questions for fear of saying the wrong thing and I imagine it's the same for most staff too.
I probably shouldn't have used the term 'rant' earlier because I don't have a go at the kids but more like I allow the lesson to be derailed into a discussion. There's a lot of confusion out there.

foxy What's your point? You want a biology teacher to lie about biology?

Pratchet

Why were you rolling your eyes at me?

Anyway, I've been marking both GCSE and ALevel biology exams for several years and never seen any evidence of specific disinformation as opposed to lack of knowledge. However, this would depend on an appropriate question coming up.

I have attached key pages from the latest AQA spec and am perfectly happy with it: note the correct use of woman and mother.

I suspect the OP is a KS3 teacher. When she teaches KS4/5 she won't be able to avoid teaching the truth because it's there on the spec (blame that if necessary), and most schools want kids to pass exams.

There is no danger of losing your job if you teach just the spec surely? Are we really heading to a test case of a teacher being sacked for teaching to syllabus/truth?

Final page

My dd starts secondary . She's been looking at "are you trans" quizzes, following some pretty distressed sounding us teens on amimo etc.

I had a gentle chat with her as I don't really think reading lots of stuff about binding and depression and stuff is great but equally, I'm not going to take her internet away, and it's everywhere, and teens have always angsted etc.

Anyway I asked her if she knew what trans meant she had a stab at it, when a boy or a girl changes into the other. I asked her if she thought that meant they literally changed sex, like a girl got a willy somehow, she looked very unsure but her answer was yes.

Children are getting and sharing all sorts of info round this. I think am element of it is the tribalism similar to music when we were young, the labelling of groups, dress codes etc.

So I'm not that surprised at the op.

Reading thread now!

As for snogging in front of teachers...
Regardless of orientation, I always sanctioned such behaviour as inappropriate in a working environment.

I mean, she's 10, her sources are kids on amimo.

She is gnc which is aok, I do worry about her getting ideas from quizzes and stuff. I mean, I'm always a man on "what sex is your brain quizzes" but I know they're bollocks:D

Anyone who doesn't see it as a possibility that this is something kids are being led towards when they are just gay/ gnc doesn't remember being that age, I think.

I’m glad I wasn’t scoffed at. I generally believe basic of human biology should come from home, but accept that schools have to cover to gaps. Clearly there are lots of gaps, not just trans stuff, that are still missed. Definitely if it was spelled out more clearly people would understand gender is society and sex is biology. I knew who I fancied (boys and girls) until I had a mandatory pse lesson where i swear at 16 they made me think it was impossible. I sorted it out but in an hour I went from certain to thinking I was a selfish attention seeking heterosexual woman because lesbians categorically cannot be attracted to men and bi was the term for a lesbian trying to conform to societies norms. Women who were attracted to men but were sexually active with women were exibitionists. Delivered in a matter of fact way by a teacher I would not have dared question.

Obviously OP is not that kind of teacher. But plenty of parents and teachers put their embarrassment ahead of answering questions. Lots of men and women have only vague ideas about the way their body works. Surely that should be a priority, the earlier the better.

I suspect the OP is exaggerating a teeny bit I have never heard any suggestion biology classes need to change. Personal / Social Education or Citizenship I could believe.

OP were you teaching when Section 28 got repealed? Were you spitting feathers?

daimbars please explain what is the link between the importance of teaching the facts of biology and Section 28? I can't see any.