Teaching gender identity in schools

[LadyHester]

DH is a governor in a local secondary school. Today he went on a learning walk, which included a visit to a Y10 Ethics class where the children were being told that being a ‘girl’ or a ‘boy’ was not something that could be determined at birth.
Is this even legal?

The guidelines are so vague you will have some people arguing that it is and some people arguing that it isn't. DfE guidelines say you shouldn't teach contested theory as fact so I would say not at all appropriate. I recommend you DH looks at the Safe Schools Alliance website, Sex Matters and Transgender Trend for lots of advice on how to approach these issues and get the school to teach GI as a belief, not a fact

Agree - this is teaching a partisan (and highly contested) political view as fact. Not ok. Breaches this guidance on political impartiality.
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/political-impartiality-in-schools/political-impartiality-in-schools

I had to deliver pshe on gender this week. I always start by saying that most importantly we must be kind and not say mean things.

We had a great discussion about it all. All led by them.

Most of the kids have no issues, but all said you couldn't change sex but you could gender. They were happy to use pronouns and new names. They didn't think rapists should be in women's prisons but didn't care about toilets (I guess they are used to this, more than us older people).

The biggest discussion was about why trans women online now have beards.

I just let them talk and was surprised at how sensible they were, especially since some have trans friends.

I always start by saying that most importantly we must be kind and not say mean things.
Brilliant. Therefore you immediately silence those children who quite reasonably might want to express gender critical views. Well done.

all said you couldn't change sex but you could gender

Could any of them explain what they mean by "gender"?

Can you?

They were happy to use pronouns and new names.

Did you make sure the counter-arguments were aired? If not, why not?

You have an obligation to remain politically impartial, remember.

didn't care about toilets

Did you tell them that school toilets must be single sex, by law?

Wow @NegativNancy you live up to your name. Didn't silence anyone but I also won't tolerate name calling. Sorry if you are happy for your child to go through that but as a decent teacher and human I won't have it in my classroom - it's a safe space. A couple did have gender critical views and were able to express their thoughts without resorting to name calling. It can be done you know.

Yes they could and yes I can.

During the gender studies part of my degree we were taught sex is biology, gender is a social construct.

That was before the whole topic went mad though.

Yes, I know about political impartiality - been teaching over 20 years and I am pretty good at it.
Pronouns were discussed from both sides along with the 'could I identify as a tree then'. The overall consensus was that it wasn't an issue to call someone a name that they chose. Remember these are 14 year olds and haven't experience of the negativity of older trans people - just people their age.

Go on then…

Again this is something that bothers kids less. At school there are mixed and single sex toilets (floor to ceiling doors in all).
We discussed the law but it was the least of their issues/discussion. They were accepting of it as the norm as they have grown up with it.
Personally I hate it.

As @booksandbrooks said, to me gender is a social construct completely different to biological sex.

I didn't post this to be lambasted - I posted it to show that gender pshe doesn't have to be like the one in the OP, which is shocking.

gender is a social construct completely different to biological sex.

Well, ok, but that doesn't say what it is. Can you?

Some Of my pupils told me about a lesson they'd just had on gender. They said people can take pills to change their sex... or maybe it was to change their gender, they weren't sure. When I asked them what they meant by "gender" they had no idea, and these were bright kids.

They'd had at least an hour on this, thought they'd understood, but actually had no understanding of what was at the core of it. I suspect their teacher hadn't either.

It am always amazed how the term is bandied about without any definition.

Thanks all for posts and links. DH is reluctant to pursue the matter on the grounds that he was only briefly in the lesson and for all he knew the contrary view was expressed after he left the room.
It’s not what I’d do, but it wasn’t my learning walk.

Seeing as I will never answer to your tune, please tell me what it is to you. You seem to be the expert on implying I have no clue what I am on about.

It doesn't mean anything to me in the sense of something that people can "have".

Whenever I hear the phrase "your gender" or "changing their gender", I wonder: what does the speaker mean by that?

It seems to me to mean something like "the sex that someone says they are", but I'm sure that's not what's intended.

I agree. To me It's a perception thing - what they perceive it means to be a specific sex so they alter their gender to conform to the stereotype. Which is why, I guess, a lot of trans women are overly 'girlie' as that's what they think a woman is.

Pieceofpurplesky· Today 21:35

-Could any of them explain what they mean by "gender"? -

-Can you? -

Yes they could and yes I can.

Seeing as I will never answer to your tune, please tell me what it is to you.

As you stated that you can explain the difference and were asked first, it's my opinion that it's up to you to elucidate, or else people are unlikely to believe you.

what subjects is he link governor for, at the school? He can ask to see all the curriculum materials and be taken through it by the subject lead. Or he can ask the ethics / PSHE / RE / RSE link governor about the content.

if he was a governor at my child’s school I’d want him to ask questions. Will he be doing pupil voice interviews at some point, for Ethics? He can ask the kids questions then…

Is that true? New builds maybe.

There has to be single sex toilet provision, but I don't think they all have to be single sex?

Again someone claims to know what gender is but refuses to define it. Again the only defence is I know what it is but you tell me first so I can pick apart your argument.
I'll tell you what gender is, it's a social construct, it's imaginary.
I'm female and I have a female body. I don't feel like I am a woman, I am one. I like some stereotypically female things and some stereotypically male things. I wear trousers mostly but not because I think I'm a man or a woman but because I'm comfortable in them.

@SinnerBoy see below. My thoughts. I actually don't care if people believe me or not, as I am a grown up!

My initial post was to show that not all pshe gender classes are dangerous and misguided - and that children are open for discussion on the topic and come at it from all angles. Which is a positive thing.