School Registration Form - pushing gender identity

[BreatheAndFocus]

DC has been accepted at a secondary school and I’m filling out the registration form (name, address, etc etc). What has pissed me off massively though is the questions about gender identity. They’re asked in such a way to imply that everyone has a gender identity, and there’s no way to say DC hasn’t, or to omit the question (because it’s online and you have to answer all questions).

The choices are: Male, Female, Self-Describe. That’s it. No way to say you don’t have one and don’t believe in this crap stuff.

Surely this isn’t neutral? It’s pushing a belief. Is this allowed?

(Note - ticking Self Describe didn’t bring up a box I could type None in, it just stayed a tick. My concern with that is that activist teachers will be rushing up to DC and asking whether they’re enby, Otherkin, etc etc.)

helenwaspushed

"Everyone has a gender and a sex. You don't have to buy isn't trans vs cis for this to be true."

False. "Gender identity" wasn't even invented till very recently. Not a single person in any of my schools, university, or workplaces till maybe the last 10-15 years ever claimed to have a "gender", it was Not. A. Thing. I don't have a gender, I'm sure most posters on here will say the same too, and there are still plenty of people, and indeed probably whole countries, who've never even heard of such a concept. "Gender identity" has only become "a thing" because activists realised they'd never get the general public to believe some people change sex, so they had to find another way of insisting this obvious bloke in the female changing room was "really a woman inside".

"If accuracy is the issue I would agree that "man/woman" would be suitable choices for gender"

Nope. "Man" and "woman" are the words for humans of either sex, just like duck/drake, nanny/billy etc. in other species, and always have been. If they didn't mean that, we'd need other words that did (are you trying to pretend we never actually had words for the 2 most obvious categories of human, vital for the survival of the human race?!). Just because people like to attach stereotypes to the words sometimes, that doesn't change their meaning. And after all, how could words that have existed for millennia, in various languages, actually refer to something only invented 5 minutes ago? If you want words for "genders", you can make up your own.

"It sounds like you're the one confused about the difference between sex and gender though."

Sex is real, evidenced and relevant, "gender" is a niche belief. HTH.

"There still exists people who believe their sex and gender are different and those people want to be able to represent themselves the way they feel is accurate."

So? These people shouldn't be able to dictate how everyone else describes themselves, or mandate that others align with their niche beliefs, just as they wouldn't be allowed to make us pick a religion from a list without being able to say "no ta, I don't believe in any of them"!

Thats not what was said. It was said that this board is for people who "reject trans ideology".

Maybe you missed my earlier question @GlovedhandsCecilia - do you think 11 year olds should be asked misleading or inaccurate questions on forms? Or, since then, be required to give information that isn't relevant?

No, I ignored it. I don't play into the fixations of others. It is unhealthy for them.

So, let's assume (correctly) that I'm not fixated, but simply interested in the viewpoint of someone who has argued quite vociferously against the majority on here.

The questions require a yes or no answer - should be very simple and straight forward for you respond to. Which one is it?

Why would your interest (vs fixation) oblige me to answer?

If you want to know what I'd tell my 11 year old kid, then that would be to answer whether they are male or female. I wouldn't even entertain the discussion about this issue. That's the difference between me, you guys here and the parents of trans kids. The latter 2 groups have a lot in common.

And my kid? Would just move on because they have no knowledge of this stuff. It isnt in their school. It isnt in our home. And it isnt in our community. They'd just assume it's asking them if they are a boy or a girl and they all know the answer to that.

I dont think any of you are doing your kids any favours by these things being regularly ranted about discussed at home.

You have to ask yourselves which kids are identifying this way. What are there demographics? And why is it those demographics? Then ask yourself are we in that demographic?

So many words to say 'yes'.

If that was an attempt to look superior and shame those who want to discuss a perfectly relevant subject, it was a massive fail.

If it's of no interest to you - who lives in a barn in the middle of nowhere and shields their kids from the rest of the world - then by all means scroll past.

But it's not really your objective is it.

Ffs stop being so 'obsessed ' about a topic you claim doesn't exist as a problem.

I dont think any of you are doing your kids any favours by these things being regularly ranted about discussed at home

And I don’t think you’re doing your kids any favours by making them work down a coal mine.

Yep, I know you don’t make your children work down a coal mine, but it makes as much sense as your nasty digs. I explained how my DC had come across trans and gender identities in my post above. They did NOT hear it from me because I wasn’t going to mention anything.

But again, you’re not here to respond to what people say, are you?

As for your ‘I’d just write female/male” - they’re not gender identities and, while you might believe in gender identity, I don’t and neither do many others here and I object to answering a question that insists everyone has one, as does my DC, as I explained above. You initially said my DC should answer the question, then when I said they had, you didn’t like their answer 🙄

I see some of your nastier posts have been deleted. I started this thread to find information and I’ve had some understanding and helpful replies - whereas you, from the very start, have sought to sneer, lie and disrupt. I’m tempted to ask why, but I think I know the answer.

Anyway, back to the question. There must be lots of similar registration forms going out now. I wonder if others ask similar questions?

I wonder if this is a case for the Information Commissioner as keeping records that are intrusive and for which there is no justification?

People who find coherent thought difficult at the best of times probably do find it incomprehensible that a ten-year-old may be capable of coherent thought.

Thank you - I did wonder that too.

They will because the criteria in the national database are incorrect

Its worth a quick complaint to the ICO that irrelevant personal data about children is being stored contrary to GDPR

Safe Schools Alliance has template letters for schools (and many other resources). This template is about equality policies but could be tailored to ask about the form.

https://safeschoolsallianceuk.net/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/ea-protected-characteristics-letter-template.docx

I think your list of issues is very well put and I would include them in a letter about the registration form:

My issues are;

1. The form shouldn’t even be talking about gender identity IMO;
2. As it does, there should be an option to choose ‘None’ or similar.
3. The fact there isn’t such an option has made me/DC choose Male/Female as a ‘gender identity’ when it’s not, and has implied that everyone has a gender identity - when they don’t. With the upcoming KCSIE guidance re gender questioning children, I was expecting a more considered form.

There are also.some good resources at www.sexnotgender.info/equality-monitoring/#good-practice on best practice:

Thank you very much @MyrtleLion That’s great 😊

Duplicate post due to glitch.

Duplicate post.

Duplicate!

I am grateful for all the thanks!

I saw it and rolled my eyes. 🙄

I searched for gender identity using your link and nothing came up. The only reference was to gender, which I assume they are using as a synonym for sex.

Gender (the nearest to GI) is under demographics, and as well as conflating sex, serves no purpose whatsoever. An email to point out their error is needed, I think.

Here in Wales there isn't a chance a child would reach the age of transfer to secondary without having been almost force-fed at least the outlines of gender identity ideology. The Welsh Government's new curriculum drags it in at every opportunity.

The confused one seems to be you. Words have meaning and boy, man, girl, woman are the words that refer to the juvenile and adult members of the two reproductive sexes, male and female. Gender is merely a social construct of stereotypes of behaviour and presentation, which anyone can accept or reject, but sex is coded into every cell of the body.