The Adelaide Advertiser today tells of how South Australian trans students will have a choice of uniforms, toilets and preferred names, in accordance with SA Education department policies.
The department says the policy will ensure “consistent” treatment of transgender pupils by school leaders.
“The difference is that this clearly articulates what we require from schools,” — executive director of statewide services and child development Ann-Marie Hayes
This is great news for Transgender students, however, there appears to be a barrier for Gender Questioning and Genderqueer students:
Ms Hayes stressed the policy applied to transgender students whose gender identity had been discussed with parents and confirmed by health professionals.
So, good news if you’re diagnosed transgender, less so if you’re questioning your gender or identify as genderqueer. But the schools also have discretion to determine the best course of action if parents disagree with the students’ gender identity; however it would only be in extreme cases.
In the name of “balanced reporting” the Advertiser asked ex research officer for Family Voice Australia Roslyn Phillips for a quote. She says if you don’t encourage kids to follow their internal gender identity, they’ll just grow out of it.
To which we say “Citation Please”; there’s a difference between opinion and researched, peer-reviewed fact.
As always, there’s an “annoyance warning” on the article comments.
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