Gender Neutrality

Dana Franey
San Rafael, CA
Liberal Studies
dana.franey@students.dominican.edu
 Agenda
● Background
● Purpose of study
● Research Question
● Review of Literature
● Methods
● Findings
● Conclusions
Arrival Story
 Purpose
The purpose of my capstone was to observe what
methods and strategies teachers implement in
order to create a gender inclusive
classroom environment.
 Gender Neutrality
ADJECTIVE
● 1Suitable for, applicable to, or common to both male

and female genders

1. 1.1 Denoting a word or expression that cannot

be taken to refer to one gender only.
2. ‘gender-neutral terms like flight attendant,
firefighter, and police officer’

Merriam Webster
 Research Question
How do teachers promote gender neutrality in the
classroom?
 Review of Literature
“Historically, it has been common for parents
of gender-nonconforming youth to deny their
children’s true gender identity and force
them to live as their birth gender.”

(Ehrensa , 2016; Hidalgo, Ehrensa , Tishelman,

Clark, Garafalo, Rosenthal, Spack & Olson, 2013).
 Review of Literature
“Children who are gender atypical and who feel
pressure to conform to gender stereotypes often
experience emotional distress and lowered
self-esteem.”

Carver, Yunger, & Perry, 2003

 Review of Literature
“One of the most difficult, yet most affirmative,
communicative modifications to make
when aiming for gender inclusivity
is the use of pronouns.”

Charles Goehring, 2014

 Methods
Classroom observations:

● 5th grade classroom

● 24 students
● Two hours/week for 10 weeks
 Findings
The teachers intentional language choice creates an
environment where boys and girls are treated equally. This
then creates a classroom free of favorites and gender
biases.
 Findings
Classroom library books that discuss
those who are different, gave
students a better understanding
of people different than them
 Findings
By allowing students to choose what pronouns they speak
with and choose to use in certain scenarios, the teacher is
allowing the student to express creativity without being tied
down to a pronoun that may be chosen by the majority.
 Conclusions
Teachers who intentionally create an
environment where students can
express themselves without
judgement, teach students who are
more accepting and tolerant of
others.
 Conclusions
When students are taught that their
words have an impact on others,
teachers create a classroom with
students who are more accepting of
their peers.
 Conclusions
When students are taught to think
before they speak, the teacher helps
students to become more accepting of
those around them.
Discussion