Schools told going gender neutral and dropping Mr and Mrs would benefit pupils
metro.co.ukThe Telegraph reported. In a workshop called Getting the Language Right for 2022, funded by the National Education Union (NEU), Dr Elly Barnes said the education sector should be moving towards a ‘gender-free model’.Dr Barnes, the chief executive of the Educate & Celebrate charity, allegedly told staff they should be referred to as ‘teacher’ or ‘headteacher’ followed by their surname.Similarly to obsolete terms like ‘lady doctor’, ‘policeman’ and ‘male nurse’, schools are also advised to adopt more gender-neutral words such as ‘pupils’, ‘students’, ‘child’ and ‘parent’.According to feminist and writer jane fae, such affirmative support to pupils is great for their mental health and – at the most extreme – is likely to reduce self-harm and suicide thoughts.Speaking on behalf of TransActual – an organisation working to combat rampant transphobia in the UK, she told Metro.co.uk: ‘If you are dealing with a trans or non-binary person, then modify your language, but for anyone else, go as it is.‘All they [Educate & Celebrate] is point out the best practice, remembering that not all teachers are binary.‘It is appropriate to use gendered terms when people are, but not when they aren’t – it is adding, not banning.
