How to get your child exempted from gender indoctrination
Exactly what to say
These suggestions are applicable to New Zealand parents only
Like many parents, you may be concerned about the inclusion of aspects of gender ideology within the New Zealand Ministry of Education’s current suggested Relationships and Sexuality Education (RSE) content. Not all schools are teaching these ideas yet, but some are. I described my concerns about our current RSE curriculum in a recent article which has been widely shared on social media.
Sending the suggested email below to your school principal will oblige your school to exempt your children from instruction in the RSE topics listed in the email. Your children will still be able to take part in other aspects of RSE. I have sent this request to the principal of my own children's school, and I received a polite and helpful response. In general, I've also had a thoughtful and supportive response from other members of the school community with whom I've discussed these issues.
If you have withdrawn your child from RSE class, you may still find it helpful to send an email similar to the one below. The aim of doing so is to prevent the school from teaching your child gender ideology as part of a non-RSE class (this is something the Ministry of Education is encouraging schools to do - see page 28 of this guide).
Of course, please feel free to modify this email before sending, to meet your individual needs and writing style. I’d also encourage you to share a link to this page with other parents who may find the suggested email helpful. Tackling this issue will be much easier and more effective if you work together with other concerned parents.
If you find the suggested email helpful, please leave a comment :)
Suggested email to your school principal
Subject: Exemption from specific elements of Relationships and Sexuality Education
Kia ora xxx,
I have some concerns about the Ministry of Education’s current suggested RSE content. Please exempt my children from any instruction, in the context of any school subject:
Regarding theories of gender identity.
Regarding preferred gender pronouns.
Promoting the use of puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones, gender change surgery, or the idea that human beings can change their biological sex.
Encouraging students to consider stopping the normal menstrual cycle for non-medical reasons (e.g. the Education Outdoors New Zealand programme “Going with the flow”).
Promoting the belief that people other than women can menstruate, become pregnant, or give birth.
Implying that there are more than two sexes in humans or that there is a “continuum” of femaleness and maleness.
Promoting the idea that adherence to gender stereotypes or the expression of personality can determine whether someone is male or female.
Encouraging students to keep information about their well-being and/or identity secret from parents.
Based on materials sourced from the activist groups Minus 18 or InsideOut, or any similar LGBT+ activist or lobby group.
Encouraging participation in Rainbow Clubs or similar groups where teachers or students discuss transgender or non-binary identities.
Please note that you are obliged to meet these requests under the Education and Training Act 2020 (section 51). Please notify me in advance if my children will need to be separated from their class for this reason, so that I can discuss this with them and with you. If there is any ambiguity as to whether planned instruction contains any of the elements listed above, then please discuss this with me in advance.
I would also like the opportunity to understand how our school will be approaching RSE instruction. Please provide me in advance with copies of any RSE materials that will be used in classroom instruction, whether in the context of a dedicated RSE class or in any other curriculum areas. Please also provide me with a copy of all school policies that address gender identity.
Some common parental concerns about the Ministry’s suggested RSE content are described in these two articles:
If you would like to better understand the reasons for my request, you may find these articles helpful.
I very much appreciate your assistance with this important matter. Please contact me if you would like to further discuss this request.
Kind regards,
xxx
Photo by Ketut Subiyanto from Pexels
This article was updated on 9th August 2022, and on 14th September 2022, to include additional areas of instruction to avoid, links to my articles describing concerning aspects of New Zealand’s current RSE curriculum, and a brief description of my own experience of sending this request.