Only two genders is a 'faulty concept,' state department of education says

HARRISBURG, PA. (TND) — Guidelines posted on the Pennsylvania Department of Education’s website about “creating gender-inclusive schools and classrooms” call the idea that there are only two genders a "faulty concept," and indicate gender-neutral pronouns like "ne, ve, ze/zie and xe" are identifiers sometimes used by students.

The website displays and links out to a list of gender diversity "words you should know" authored by activist Carrie Kilman. Kilman’s list was previously published in Teaching Tolerance Magazine in 2013.

In addition to the traditional pronouns (he/him, she/her, they), some people prefer to use gender-neutral pronouns, such as ne, ve, ze/zie and xe,” reads the definition next to “Preferred Personal Pronouns” on Kilman’s list referenced on the Pennsylvania Department of Education’s website.

If you don't know a student's preferred personal pronoun, it's always best to ask,” the definition concludes.

Kilman’s "words you should know," shared in Pennsylvania's guidelines to “creating gender-inclusive schools and classrooms,” also define “Binary Gender,” calling it “the faulty concept that there are only two genders: male and female.”

Beneath that definition are other words on Kilman’s list and their corresponding “definitions,” including “Birth Sex/Biological Sex,” “Cisgender” and “Genderqueer.”

The Pennsylvania Department of Education's webpage about creating gender-inclusive schools also lists “Lesson Plans and Activities,” including a toolkit “for hosting a gender-neutral day in classrooms (grades 3-12)” across the state.

The toolkit referenced by the Pennsylvania Department of Education instructs teachers, among other things, to tell their students to pick two or three examples of how they “will reject gender stereotypes for the day.”

Erika Sanzi, the director of outreach at nonprofit Parents Defending Education, told Fox News the Pennsylvania Department of Education messaging is all “part of a national effort in schools to ‘break the binary’ by confusing young children about biological sex and indoctrinating them into believing that gender is a spectrum.”

Sanzi added that PDE “should delete these ideology-based resources from their website,” and noted that “anyone teaching gender fluidity to 3-year-olds does not belong in a classroom.”

The National Desk (TND) reached out to the Pennsylvania Department of Education to confirm whether it was the department’s stance that the idea there are only two genders is a “faulty concept.” A spokesperson from the department responded but did not directly answer TND’s question about whether it believed the idea there are only two genders is a “faulty concept.”

“It is incumbent upon us to support ALL learners, and make them ALL feel welcome in their schools and communities. This commonwealth was founded on the principles of inclusion and belonging, and we must ensure that we continue to make our neighbors feel safe,” the spokesperson told TND in an emailed statement. “The equity, inclusion and belonging (EIB) resources we are providing to schools are optional supports that they can use to foster a sense of belonging in their school.”

The spokesperson added that the department’s efforts to best serve their students align with Governor Tom Wolf’s administration, which the department told TND “supports equity, inclusion, and belonging efforts in every school.”