Transgender Issues and Education Internationally

How schools deal with transgender students differs by country. This overview covers England, the United States and Canada.

England

On 19 December 2023 the English Department for Education (DfE) published draft guidance for schools and colleges. It states that schools do not have to accept all requests for social transition, that they should take a very cautious approach to such requests, including watchful waiting periods, and that parents must be fully consulted before any decision is taken. Schools must provide sex-separated toilets for pupils aged 8 or over and suitable changing accommodation and showers for pupils aged 11 or over; a child may not use a space designated solely for the opposite sex. Primary school children should not be given pronouns other than those of their sex. According to the DfE, the guidance was developed with the conclusions of the Cass Review in mind (source). The consultation ran until 12 March 2024; on 12 February 2026 the DfE proposed including the guidance in the safeguarding guidance Keeping children safe in education (source). The Cass Review describes social transition in healthcare as an active intervention (para. 12.5; source). What the report means for schools is explained at genderopschool.nl.

United States and Canada

In the United States, the federal approach has changed several times. With the Title IX rule of 29 April 2024, the Biden administration introduced new rules against sex discrimination in education; that rule was vacated by courts on 9 January and 19 February 2025 and formally withdrawn on 29 September 2026 (source). On 5 February 2025 President Trump signed the executive order Keeping Men Out of Women's Sports (source). Recent examples include the school district that requires staff to report a student's transition to their parents and the mother suing a school over a secret gender policy. In Florida, the Parental Rights in Education Act of 2022 provided that classroom instruction by school personnel or third parties on sexual orientation or gender identity may not occur in kindergarten through grade 3, or in a manner that is not age-appropriate or developmentally appropriate for students (source). In Canada, the province of Saskatchewan established in 2023 that students under sixteen need their parents' consent before teachers at school use a new name or new pronouns for them; the province invoked the notwithstanding clause of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms (source); see gender care in Canada.

The key question: parents

In every country, the debate revolves around the same question: may a school treat a child by a different name and as the opposite sex without the parents knowing? Supporters of confidentiality point to children who are not safe at home. Opponents argue that a school cannot make a significant decision about a child without the parents and that doing so means the school is stepping into the role of a healthcare professional. The situation in the Netherlands is covered under gender at school and schools and transgender children; for more about the step itself, see social transition in children.