b'2017 2017 2018Family Court rulesM a r r i a g e tr ans gen der/ EqualityVote genderdysphoricteenagersinAustraliano-61.6%of longerneedcourtapprovaltoundertakeAustralianssayAustralianFootballLeague(AFL)releasesa hormonetreatmentprovidingtheyhavetheyes to same sex marriage. gender diversity policy.support of doctor and family. 2010 2019 2017 2019TheAustralianHumanRightsTasmaniamakestherecordingofVictorianParliamentintroduces CommissionpublishesGuidelinesgender optional on Tasmanian birthbillallowingtransgenderand CricketAustraliareleasesitsfor the inclusion of transgender andcertificates.gender diverse people to change transgenderandgenderdiversitygender diverse people in sport. the sex on their birth certificate policy.without having fully transitioned. InanarticlepublishedonlineinAugust2018,theMedicalAISNSWrecommendspreparingariskassessmentpriorto Journal of Australia notes that an estimated 1.2% of Australianenrolment. This may cover issues such as the use of change adolescents identify as transgender. According to the article,roomsandtoilets,sport,excursionsandcampsandother It is well recognised that transgender and gendersituations in which a childs birth sex might accidentally be diverse(TGD)individualsareatincreasedriskofrevealed. It might also deal with the feelings of other students, harmbecauseofdiscrimination,socialexclusion,with bullying and alienation and inadvertent discrimination.bullying, physical assault and even homicide.Whilewevemadeanumberofadjustments,therehave Sothereisagreatdealtobeawareofwhendealingwithbeen remarkably few problems since enrolling our two young transgender/genderdiversestudents.Agreatdealoftact,transgender people. sensitivity and understanding is needed in order to do the bestSome practical improvements include new unisex toilets they for the child and family.can use and a very relaxed and flexible uniform policy. Our We felt, as a school, that the families were putting a lot of faithuniform offerings are not divided into girls and boys - there are in us to do the right thing by them. IGS is in a good position tosimply pieces of uniform which may be worn by anyone in any do thatas a secular, co-educational school we dont have thecombination. For PE, which is the only time our year groups are same constraints and considerations as a single-sex or faith- split into girls and boys, the transgender students join the group based school might have. they identify with. The school also accommodates any support or treatment they are getting outside school by giving them the time away that they need.The Australian Perspective The past few years have been an interesting time in Australia In Australia there is a plethora of state and federal legislationfrom a sexual identity and freedom point of view. This is evident protecting the rights and privacy of students.in many areas of society, from elite sport to marriage equality to Schoolsarerequiredtocloselyobservediscriminationlegal and medical arenas. These changes have triggered debate lawwhenenrollingstudents.Justaswerenotallowedtoand dissent in some quarters but they also indicate a growing discriminate against a student or prospective student on theacceptance and visibility of gender diversity in Australia, and basis of disability, neither are schools allowed to use sex, sexualthis is bound to filter down to schools.orientation or gender identity as a governing factor in theirThere are, no doubt, things we have yet to learn. All students are decisions about students and prospective students (althoughdifferent and perhaps that particularly applies to TGD students therearesomeexemptionsforindependentschools).Butwhoalreadyhaveaconsiderablebackstoryandperhapsa privacy and confidentiality is paramountthe stakes are higherhistory of trauma or mental health issues as well. for transgender students than most others.AISNSW frames transgender students as a subset of StudentsALEXANDRA PETERS withDiverseNeedsalongwithchildrenwithdisability,DIRECTOR OF additional learning requirements or mental health concerns.ADMISSIONS AND MARKETING This approach is in recognition that transgender students willINTERNATIONAL GRAMMAR SCHOOLrequire additional planning, support and adjustments. DECEMBER 2019 9'