Uni of Leeds publishes research on making curriculum more trans and non-binary inclusive

The University of Leeds has published research on making its curriculum more trans and non-binary inclusive.

Leeds’ Medical School is adapting its curriculum to “develop a university-wide culture which promotes equality and inclusion”. It aims to ensure the “advancement of gender equality”, allowing for “representation, progression and success for all”.

The university also published research that questions: “Why is your medical curriculum straight?” It suggests medical students should learn about “non-traditional pregnancies” and “diverse family structures”, the Daily Mail reports.

This university initiative follows a broader movement to “decolonise the curriculum”, which has called for the inclusion of more ethnic minority voices.

Other universities in the UK are increasingly making space for transgender and non-binary perspectives in their curriculums, with Warwick University incorportating a “Queering University Programme” promoting “queer pedagogies and perspectives”.

Historically, the term“queer” was a slur. But it has been reclaimed as a term of empowerment for the LGBTQ+ community. It often serves as an umbrella term for those who do not define within traditional gender and sexuality labels.

It encourages the faculty to ensure its teaching is inclusive of transgender people and advises lecturers to include gender diverse content in teaching.

Similarly, Exeter University now has a “trans inclusion booklet” written by students and academics, encouraging the inclusion of transgender people in the curriculum. The university said this will “show that transgender identities are normal”.

SOAS University of London issued guidelines in 2022 encouraging staff to embed “trans, non-binary and intersex awareness into their curriculum”, including inviting guest lecturers who are trans, non-binary or intersex.

York University’s English department held a seminar in 2021 celebrating ways of “queering the curriculum”, including studying LGBTQ+ writers throughout history.

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In 2023, UCL’s Bartlett architecture school released a paper titled “Queering the Bartlett Curriculum”, discussing the relevance of queer theory in “the built environment fields”.

The paper critiques the profession’s historical reliance on single-sex toilets, framing it as an issue linked to violence, and proposes that “queer methodologies” be included in teaching.

Featured image edits via Pixabay/Canva