Day: January 3, 2023

Should Schools Encourage Children To Transition?

By Bob Small

Trans people are not “an issue”.  

They are people.

The first activity many of us need to do, when looking at new formations is force ourselves to understand that this is 2023, rather than 1983 or 1953 or any prior date.  The second activity, and this is purely my idea, is how do we neither encourage or discourage a mature person from becoming a Transexual Person but how do we wait until they are mature enough to come to this decision.  How old is mature enough?  To my mind, if they are not old enough to drive, enlist in the military, or vote, they are not old enough to make as final a decision as “transitioning”.   Or is the opposite true, should 12-year-olds be able to drive, enlist in the military, and vote?  And how should this be decided?

And, more importantly, who should make the decision.  I only have answers, not questions.

The toolkit for gender spectrum  brings up some fascinating questions like “are there gender differences in what kids are expected to do during recess? They also discuss the “gender-neutral day”.  There are some fascinating ideas here, which are, at least, worth debating.

In Philadelphia, for instance, had quoted the Pope Francis as saying “The Catholic Church consistently affirms the inherent dignity of each and every person.”  I’m not sure of the current translation of that, since there are not any recent posts, but you can see the previous details here.

The Post Millennial, is a conservative Canadian publication which has published some stories I found dubious one of which was the Pennsylvania Department of Education says kids can identify as transgender.

So I checked Pennsylvania Department of Educations website and it did have the line, under “Creating Gender-inclusive schools and classrooms  that “If you don’t know a student’s preferred personal pronoun, it’s always best to ask”. 

I couldn’t find anything on three-year-olds identifying as transgender, however.

In Delaware County, Haverford High School introduced proposed School Board  Policy 259, ensuring Equity and Non-discrimination for Gender Expansive and Transgender students and Strath Haven’s The Panther Press carried an article Unlocking the door to equality  by Cece Olszewski on Jan. 20, 2022

The first high school in Pennsylvania to adopt a Transgender Bathroom Policy, was Springfield Township in Montco.

So, is there a way to arrive at an age for this decision.  Is there even a way to discuss this?

I’d like to hear opinions.