End of School Year Won’t End the Debate Over Gender Ideology in Schools

The end of the school year doesn’t mean an end to the continuing culture war clashes over gender ideology. As a member of my local school board, I recognize that these battles distract from the primary purpose of grade school education — teaching children foundational literacy and knowledge. They are also out of step with the interests of the vast majority of students and their families, in large part because they almost always arise from the prodding of activists or “allies” of narrow interest groups.

These activist groups often claim the mantel of truth as defined by “settled science” — an oxymoron if ever there was one. The evidence for what’s best for children who identify as transgender is anything but settled. The recommendations from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) hew closely to those of the World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH) and encourage essentially unquestioned affirmation of children’s atypical gender perception. Conversely, health authorities in the United Kingdom, France, and elsewhere have all recently taken a different approach. Swedish physicians went so far as to label WPATH as an advocacy group rather than a professional scientific organization. And earlier this year, Norway joined a growing number of European countries in recommending restrictions on “gender-affirming care” for minors.

A recent report in the British Medical Journal succinctly summarizes the current evidence, writing, “There was 'scarce and inconclusive evidence to support clinical decision-making’ for minors with gender dysphoria and that for most who present before puberty it will be a 'transient phase,’ requiring clinicians to focus on psychological support and to be 'mindful’ even of the risks of social transition.” The British National Health Service recently noted that using a child’s preferred name and pronouns is “not a neutral act,” but rather one that can solidify what is otherwise likely to be a passing phase into a more permanent state of mind, or “identity,” and put the minor on a path to drugs and surgeries.

Furthermore, a review of a Finnish study found that “evidence from a combined 12 studies to date demonstrates that when children with cross-gender or gender variant behavior are left to develop naturally, the vast majority come to terms with their bodies and learn to accept their sex. When they are socially transitioned, virtually none do .”

That last phrase bears the greatest effect on K-12 school policy because it challenges the prevailing view here in the U.S. — that of an “affirmation-only” approach. Affirmation-only advocates operate under two false presumptions. The first is that children as young as 3 or 4 can “know who they are” and that their self-perception is to be accepted and affirmed without question. Virtually every parent’s experience with their children belies how rarely this is the case. The second is that children don’t tell their parents about their atypical gender perception because of fear of physical or emotional harm. This wrongly assumes that parents, who know their children best, are a risk to their children just because they disagree with their child’s perception.

These presumptions underlay a pernicious belief that school personnel are both uniquely positioned and ethically obligated to keep secret from families a student’s disclosure of gender dysphoria or atypical gender expression or identity. They aren’t.

In fact, barring clear and documented evidence of abuse, the obligation is exactly the opposite — parents should be presumed to have their child’s best interests in mind, and school personnel should facilitate, rather than prevent, parental primacy in their child’s development.

Most pernicious of all, however, is the abhorrent retort of “Would you rather have a transgender child or a dead one?” to those who question the gender fluidity narrative. Suicide is well-established as a multi-faceted and horrific outcome of severe emotional distress. There is rarely a single cause. The oft-stated claim that 41% of transgender youth attempt suicide comes from a non-scientific survey, compromised by selection bias , by the Trevor Project, a transgender advocacy organization. A U.K. study found the actual suicide rate to be 0.03%. Even one is one too many but policies should be based on facts, not fears.

All children deserve to be treated with kindness, dignity, and respect. Unquestioned affirmation of a child’s atypical gender perception prior to lengthy, extensive, and multidisciplinary professional assessment and counseling fails to uphold those values and is not supported by the evidence. The assessments and counseling are far beyond the capabilities of most school personnel and require the active involvement of parents. And policies that keep the need for these interventions secret from parents are unconscionable and must stop.

Phil Derrow is a retired business owner and member of his local Board of Education.

This piece was originally published in The Washington Examiner and has been edited since publication for more accurate nuance.