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The Narwhal Rainbow Alliance is a not-for-profit committed to protecting biodiversity and promoting diversity. The Alliance uses queer narratives as their foundation.
The Narwhal Rainbow Alliance aims to support biodiversity protection through empowering local communities and projects.
[What they measured:] This study analyzed the associations among male adolescents’ gender attitudes, intentions to intervene, witnessing peers’ abusive behaviors, and multiple forms of adolescent violence perpetration.
[Who they studied:] Data were from a cross-sectional survey conducted at baseline with 866 male adolescents in community settings (i.e., youth-serving organizations, churches, after school programs, and libraries) across 20 lower-resource neighborhoods in Pittsburgh, PA from August 2015 to June 2017, as part of a cluster RCT.28 Eligible youth were aged 13—19 years, identified as male, and recruited to participate in a gender-specific violence prevention program.
[Goals] This community-based evaluation aims to inform future youth violence prevention efforts through the identification of potential predictors of interpersonal violence perpetration.
[Conclusions] Findings support violence prevention strategies that challenge harmful gender and social norms while simultaneously increasing youths’ skills in interrupting peers’ disrespectful and harmful behaviors.
Miller E, Culyba AJ, Paglisotti T, Massof M, Gao Q, Ports KA, Kato-Wallace J, Pulerwitz J, Espelage DL, Abebe KZ, Jones KA. Male Adolescents' Gender Attitudes and Violence: Implications for Youth Violence Prevention. Am J Prev Med. 2020 Mar;58(3):396-406. doi: 10.1016/j.amepre.2019.10.009. Epub 2019 Dec 27. PMID: 31889621; PMCID: PMC7039734.
Male, female, transgender, and other circular symbols made of multi-colored bones
Read this article, which details the reckoning archaeology has had to do when addressing the complex, non-binary nature of biological sex characteristics. Includes several case studies of ambiguous archaeological remains which have pushed scientists to reconsider preconceived notions of both gender and sex in prehistoric times.
Erik Anderson reports for KPBS the discovery that captive condors have reproduced through parthenogenesis, with just a single parent and an unfertilized egg.
Analysis of ancient DNA found in Finland has unveiled a surprise a century later – the remains of an early medieval warrior thought to be female may have been nonbinary. Xcaret Nuñez reports for NPR.
The data indicate that the person had a feminine presentation, likely XXY chromosomes, and a penis. The way they were buried led to the conclusion that the remains were of "a respected person whose gender identity may well have been non-binary."
To use this article with students, pre-teach the difference between gender and sex because this is not well-defined in the article.
In this Medium article, biochemist and writer Julia Serano discusses the myth of a binary biological sex, and its implications for oppression and social justice.
The Next Generation Science Standards include an appendix which discusses why and how science teachers must provide equitable learning opportunities for students from diverse backgrounds, including diverse genders. Two pertinent quotes from the appendix are as follows:
“To engage all students in learning the NGSS, it is important to understand the context that influences science learning by diverse student groups.”
“Science teachers need to acquire effective strategies to include all students regardless of racial, ethnic, cultural, linguistic, socioeconomic, and gender backgrounds.”
The National Association of Biology Teaching adopted this position statement in 2003, last revised 2009. The statement supports gender-inclusive biology teaching through two key points:
“We have a fundamental, active, and obligatory role in creating, ensuring, and promoting meaningful education environments that reflect the full spectrum of human dimensions so that diversity, unity, and equity are able to flourish in science education.”
“Diversity contributes to the richness of biological science understanding and ways of knowing, enhances our educational and scientific discourse, [and] places historical, cultural, and philosophical frames of reference in context.”
Image source: LetsTalkSex.net
“Human fertilisation is a gigantic lottery with 250 million tickets: for healthy sperm, it is the luck of the draw.”
In this popular science article, Martin debunks a series of myths and double standards in human reproduction, including the pervasive, heteronormative belief that sperm cells "race" to reach an egg.
Image shows the silhouette of a person standing with arms raised and a DNA double helix running across the page. Both figures are colored in multicolored dots. Text reads, “Biology is the study of a diverse range of living things, and biology affirms all genders.”
Sam wrote this introductory article in TEACH Magazine’s 2019 Special Issue: “Out of the Closet and Into the Classroom”. The magazine is based in Canada and all articles are available in English and French.
Written by teacher for teachers, Teaching about Gender Diversity is an edited collection of interdisciplinary lesson plans that provides K–12 teachers with the tools to implement gender-inclusive practices into their curriculum and talk to their students about gender and sex. Edited by Susan W. Woolley and Lee Airton, this engaging collection features teachers' perspectives on teaching about gender from across North America. Divided into three sections dedicated to the elementary, middle, and secondary grade levels, this practical resource provides lessons for a variety of subject areas, including English language arts, STEM, and health and physical education. To view more titles in Education, visit canadianscholars.ca.
This is a unique STEM outreach program for LGBTQ+ high schoolers. Please share with students who may be interested! Sam Long will lead a workshop about diversity in biology in the July session.
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Calling all LGBTQ+ high schoolers! Wanna learn about LGBTQ+ scientists, build STEM skills, and meet other students this summer? Check out the new Pathways in STEM summer outreach program at CU Boulder! All events are online over summer 2020.
Info and registration at http://bit.ly/pathwaysstem
Jamie Kubiak, a chemistry teacher in New York City, hosted a webinar in April 2020 in lieu of his cancelled NSTA conference presentation. The webinar video and slide deck are available below.
In this article for Slate, bone researcher Alexandra Kralick discusses scientific research that debunks the fundamental misunderstanding that sex is a binary.
Summary: Pubertal suppression therapy could significantly diminish their chances of suicide and mental health problems.
Authors: Lopez CM, Solomon D, Boulware SD, Christison-Lagay ER
Journal: Journal of Pediatric Endocrinology and Metabolism
Publication date: 2018 Jun 27;31(6):665-670. doi: 10.1515/jpem-2018-0048.
Pub Med ID: 29715194 DOI: 10.1515/jpem-2018-0048. Available at https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/29715194 .
BACKGROUND:
The objective of the study was to identify national trends in the utilization of histrelin acetate implants among transgender children in the United States.
METHODS:
We analyzed demographic, diagnostic and treatment data from 2004 to 2016 on the use of histrelin acetate reported to the Pediatric Health Information System (PHIS) to determine the temporal trends in its use for transgender-related billing diagnoses, e.g. "gender identity disorder". Demographic and payer status data on this patient population were also collected.
RESULTS:
Between 2004 and 2016, the annual number of implants placed for a transgender-related diagnosis increased from 0 to 63. The average age for placement was 14 years. Compared to natal females, natal males were more likely to receive implants (57 vs. 46) and more likely to have implants placed at an older age (62% of natal males vs. 50% of natal females were ≥;13 years; p<0.04). The majority of children were White non-Hispanic (White: 60, minority: 21). When compared to the distribution of patients treated for precocious puberty (White: 1428, minority: 1421), White non-Hispanic patients were more likely to be treated with a histrelin acetate implant for a transgender-related diagnosis than minority patients (p<0.001). This disparity was present even among minority patients with commercial insurance (p<0.001).
CONCLUSIONS:
Utilization of histrelin acetate implants among transgender children has increased dramatically. Compared to natal females, natal males are more likely to receive implants and also more likely to receive implants at an older age. Treated transgender patients are more likely to be White when compared to the larger cohort of patients being treated with histrelin acetate for central precocious puberty (CPP), thus identifying a potential racial disparity in access to medically appropriate transgender care.
Science education video host Alie Astrocyte gives a brief profile of the late transgender neuroscientist Ben Barres, his research, and his work on gender equity in science.
Image shows simplified diagrams of some systems of sex determination - hermaphroditism in plants and fish, environmental sex determination in reptiles and plants, and genotypic sex determination in humans and birds.
This PLOS Biology article details the diverse mechanisms by which sex is determined in different species, how they evolved, and how they may look in the future. The article opens with a treatment of three common myths of sex determination.
Editor’s note: The term "hermaphrodite" is appropriate for referring to non-human animals with sex characteristics that do not fit typical binary notions of male or female bodies. For humans, “intersex” is the appropriate term—learn more here!
Although the entire reading is not for k-12 audiences, the three myths, Figure 3, Figure 4, and Box 2 are suitable for high school.
This study is a review of evidence that gender identity is influenced by innate factors including genetics. The authors hypothesize that gender identity is a multifactorial complex trait with a heritable polygenic component, and that the study of this trait is important.
Although gender identity as a polygenic trait is only a hypothesis, this example could serve to show biology students how heritability studies can be used to gain a better understanding of a complex, socially relevant trait. Most textbooks cite skin color and height as examples of polygenic traits, and gender identity might be another to add to that list.
Image shows a hand holding up a speech bubble with the transgender pride flag colors - blue, pink, and white. The speech bubble contains the transgender symbol with an equal sign inside.
In this Scientific American article, Simón(e) D Sun explains how misunderstandings of science have been used to dehumanize trans people in society. Sun explains how genetic sex and the relationship between the body, brain, and hormones are both complex and validate the existence of transgender people.
Images shows twin brother astronauts Scott Kelly and Mark Kelly in front of a sliding glass door.
This article from Smithsonian Magazine summarizes how twin studies have been used untangle the influences of genes and the environment on particular traits. Twins have been used in the study of eugenics, I.Q., eating disorders, obesity, sexual orientation, and the effect of spaceflight on the body.