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11th Five Year Plan India’s Education Plan!Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has termed the 11th five year plan as “India’s educational plan”. The 11th Plan, approved at the meeting of the National Development Council in December 2007, places the highest priority on education as a centred instrument for achieving rapid and inclusive growth. At INR 2.70 lakh crore, it constitutes 20% of the Plan, representing a credible progress towards the target of 6% of GDP. The 11th Five Year Plan presents a comprehensive strategy for strengthening the education sector covering all segments of the education pyramid. It is through universal literacy, access to education and knowledge-based industrial development that India will believably march ahead to join the front ranks of the great nations of the world overcoming the challenges of ensuring that everyone has an access to education and skill building in their activity.The wish list: The 11th Plan Approach PaperThe approach paper mentions that the 11th Plan should ensure, we move towards raising public spending in education to 6% of GDP. It must fulfill the Constitutional obligation of providing free and compulsory elementary education of good quality to all children up to the age of 14. It must ensure both access and good quality and standards in respect of curriculum, pedagogy, and infrastructure irrespective of the parents’ ability to pay.Elementary EducationUnder the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA), dropout rates for both boys and girls of all social groups must be reduced sharply, if not eliminated altogether. This was around 31% in 2003-04 and was much higher in many states.With the Employment Guarantee Scheme adding to family income, the pressures are expected to somewhat reduce. Opening of crèches for children at the work site will reduce the incidence of girls dropping out to take care of younger siblings. SHGs formed by mothers should be given the task of preparing mid-day meals. A set of national testing standards will be created and a chain of institutions that test and evaluate children according to set norms will be established. Making available ICT solutions, shared management personnel, and management skills with the school committees will be crucial.Secondary EducationA major initiative for expanding secondary education up to class X, must be initiated in the 11th Plan and should include access to organised sports and games. The required expansion of secondary education calls for both public and private effort. At present, private aided and unaided schools account for 58% of the total number of secondary schools and 25% of the student population. The 11th Plan will have to find sufficient resources to evolve strategies to significantly expand the number of places in secondary schools, including expansion of intake by private schools wherever this can complement the public effort.The present trend of combining upper primary with secondary school education may need to be strengthened.Technical/Vocational EducationThe NSS data shows that only 3% of the rural youth (15-29 years) and 6 % of the urban youth have gone through any kind of vocational training. There is need to expand vocational training from the present capacity of a mere 2-3 million to at least 15 million new entrants to the labour force. While we have 5,000 Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) (under the Ministry of Labour) and 7,000 Vocational Schools (under the Ministry of HRD), China has about 5,00,000 Secondary Vocational Schools. The 11th Plan must pay special attention to devising innovative ways of modernising the ITIs and increasing their number substantially. ITIs in India typically cater to around 40 skills compared with 4,000 in China.Vocational training for both men and women should be accorded top priority in the 11th Plan. An initiative at block level for vocational training (VET) should be taken. VET will be given priority at par with secondary education in allocating public sector financial and physical resources – land and other supportive services.Higher and Technical EducationOnly about 10% of the relevant age group in India go to universities whereas in many developing countries, the figure is between 20 and 25%. The 11th Plan must undertake a major effort to expand and improve the quality of our higher education system.The NASSCOM-McKinsey Report 2005 projections indicate that these will fall short by about 5,00,000 suitable professionals (representing an opportunity cost of USD 10 billion) by the end of the decade and in the absence of corrective action, this gap will continue to grow. However, if current trends are maintained, the IT-ITES sector will need an additional 1 million plus qualified people in the next 5 years and will generate exports of USD 86 billion in FY 2012.The 11th Plan must address these, new colleges and universities must be set up, to provide easier access to students in educationally backward districts. A specific plan for upgrading a few existing select universities with a ‘potential for excellence’ must be formulated, laying down specific parameters which are in tune with global standards. One university in each state should be made a model university through all round upgradation during the 11th Plan. Select state universities should be upgraded to the level of central universities.NKC Recommendations Translated to 11th Plan ActionMajor components of the 11th Plan relate to some of the recommendations made by National Knowledge Commission.School EducationReorient Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan bringing in a strong rights focus to make Right to Education a reality: ensure basic learning conditions, special focus on Maths, Science & English, common syllabi, curriculum and pedagogy.Gradually reduce Central Government’s funding over the Plan period rather than move immediately to 50:50.Ensure minimum standards and norms for public and private schools and address systemic issues of accountability and decentralisation of decision making, teacher recruitment, teacher training, learning outcome measurement, teacher motivation.Recognise and encourage the role of private providers.Special focus on disadvantaged groups and educationally backward areas.Scheme for universal access and quality at the secondary stage; set up 6,000 model schools one in each Block, upgrade 15,000 primary schools to secondary level, additional infrastructure and additional teachers, hundred percent trained teachers.Use ICT-based pedagogy and learning aids, provide broadband connectivity to all the Government and Government-aided secondary schools.Strengthen teacher training and professional development.Vocational Training & Skill DevelopmentLaunch a National Skill Development Mission with an outlay of INR 31,200 crore to increase capacity from 2.5 million to 10 million per annum. The National Skill Development Mission would:Modernise existing public sector infrastructure to get into PPP mode with functional and governance autonomy, establish a credible accreditation system and a guidance framework for all accrediting agencies, encourage agencies to rate institutions on standardized outcomes, and establish a National Skill Inventory and a National Database for Skill Deficiency Mapping on a national web portal.Set up a National Qualifications Frame-work, which establishes equivalence and provides horizontal mobility between various vocational, technical and academic streams at more than one career points and a Trainee Placement and Tracking System for effective evaluation and future policy planning.Enlarge the coverage of skill spectrum to 1,000 trades with relevance to our emerging needs, while making a distinction between structural, interventional and last mile unemployability, and correspondingly set up programmes for 24 months, 12 months and 6 months duration. Finishing Schools will be encouraged to take care of last mile unemployability.Create a National Skill Development Fund imposing a universal skill development obligation on industry to invest in skill development of SCs/ STs/OBCs/Minorities/others candidates from BPL families – as their contribution to affirmative action combined with matching Government contribution.Enlarge the 50,000 Skill Development Centres programme eventually into a Virtual Skill Development Resource Network for web based learning.InnovationPut in place a National Innovation Policy which encourages competition among enterprises, greater diffusion of knowledge and increased support to early stage technology development initiatives and grassroots level innovators.Foster increased collaboration among the R&D institutes, Universities and private sector enterprises and leverage upon their cumulative strengths in designing and implementing various innovation programmes.Higher and Technical EducationImprove quality: work on a detailed reforms agenda including: a) admission, curriculum and assessment; b) accreditation & ratings; c) teachers competence and motivation; and d) restructure affiliated colleges and research for policy formulation.An apex independent regulatory mechanismaccompanied by greater autonomy and internal accountability; establish a high level committee to suggest specific reforms.Reduce disparities based on gender, caste, region, etc. through differential support.Establish 30 new Central Universities, 16 in States where they do not exist and 14 as World Class Universities (all India admissions, course credits, regular syllabi revision, incentives for faculty, strong linkage with industry and research institutions, no affiliated colleges, outsource non teaching functions).Establish a National Science and Engineering Research Board for rejuvenation of research in Universities.Launch a national Mission in education through ICT coverage in all the Universities and colleges; broadband connectivity through National Knowledge Network and requisite nodes within institutions; to be implemented through an empowered committee.Revitalise and reform polytechnics through industry linkage and teacher development, establish 210 community colleges and 700 polytechnics.Strengthen open universities and reform statutory bodies, scale up Sakshat as the education portal for 50 crore people.The 11th Plan must simultaneously address the problems of varying standards, outdated syllabi and also inadequate facilities.The National Merit Scholarship Scheme needs to be expanded to cover at least the top 2% of the student population in fields of education and skill training.Initiatives for inclusive developmentThe open schooling programme should be strengthened and expanded. In case of subjects that do not require laboratory work, it will be helpful for students to access prerecorded selection of lectures, tutorials, and standardised tests available at Internet kiosks.Testing and examination centres where students can take standardised examinations in parts can reduce the pressure. The 11th plan should pay attention to creation of electronically available content and testing mechanisms so hat the pressure on infrastructure can be eased.Adult Literacy ProgrammesAim is to increase adult literacy to 85% by the end of the 11th Plan period. Of the 30 crore adult illiterates in our country, a significant proportion is not covered under any adult education programme. A programme using the new computer based self-learning system will be framed for the 35+ age group. Currently, literacy programmes cover 598 out of 600 districts in the country.A computer based functional literacy tool developed by Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) has the capacity to make an adult illiterate read a newspaper in 8-10 weeks. This seems as a potential tool, if deployed nationally as a mission, India can become 100% literatewithin 5 years.The Check List-11th PlanElementary education and basic literacyThe 11th Plan needs to be seen both in the national and internationalcontext. As an economic powerhouse in the context of a globalising economy, universalisation of elementary education with quality is a must which only can lead to universalisation of secondary education.The National Policy of Education (NPE), as revised in 1992, had indicated three thrust areas in elementary education:Universal access enrolmentUniversal retention of children up to 14 years of ageA substantial improvement in the quality of education to enable all children to achieve essential levels of learningIn respect of Elementary Education, the objective of the NPE has been addressed in 11th Five Year Plan mainly through the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan, and the Mid-Day Meal Scheme, the two flagship programmes of the Government, and through Teacher Education schemes.Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan: Strategies and Fact FileThere has been a reduction in the number of out of school children, decline in gender and social gaps and a decline in drop out rates.The number of teachers and number of schools have increased substantially.Surveys show that 90% of rural population was served by primary schools in 2002-03 whereas some gaps have been noticed at upper-primary level. Infrastructure facilities have improved but backlog still exists.The existing challenges are bringing the 6-7% children under the ‘hard to reach’ category into the fold of education, issues pertaining to quality improvement, bridging social gaps and reducing inter-State, inter-district and inter-block disparities.The goal of universalisation of elementary education includes education for children with special needs (CWSN).Quality of education in terms of better educational attainment levels are a thrust area for the next phase of SSA.Special emphasis needs to be made on education of girls to launch a frontal attack on gender gap with a focus on ‘inclusion’ and ‘quality’ and keeping in view the forward as well as backward linkages. Girls education schemes could also offer opportunities for public-private partnership to augment the resources required for creating/up-gradation of girls schools at the upper-primary and secondary levels to improve infrastructure and facilities (library, lab and sports).Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan seeks to provide elementary education to all children in the 6-14 years age group by 2010 and 2% education cess has been levied on all taxes and earmarked to fund this programme. There is a need of more upper primary schools. At all India level, there was one upper primary school for 2.8 primary schools in 2004-05. In 2005-06 this ratio of number of primary to upper primary schools was 2.5:1. To bring the ratio of primary upper primary school to 2:1 (SSA norm), the additional need for upper primary schools works out to 1,40,000.98% of the rural population has been served by primary schools in 2002-03. In terms of habitations, 87% were served and only 13% were yet to be provided with primary schooling facilities within one km from these habitations. During the 11th Plan period 1,32,623 primary schools have been sanctioned and it is estimated that more than 96% of habitations now have a primary school within 1 km.Access facilities in the upper primary schooling is, however, still an issue as, only 78% of the habitations had such facilities within a radius of 3 km. in 2002-03.There has been significant growth in school infrastructure under the SSA. However, the huge infrastructure gaps and slower capacity to implement large civil works programmes in some States, has led to low completion rates. This means that allocations for civil works will need to be maintained for select districts in the 11th Plan period as well.One of the outcome indicators for reporting of SSA progress in the outcome budget is reduction of dropout rates by 5 percentage points each year. It is expected that the dropout rates of children for the elementary cycle would be reduced from 50.39% in 2004-05 to less than 20% by 2011-12, during the 11th Plan period, even in a conservative scenario.Financial Progress of SSA: GOI Releases and ExpendituresNew Thrust AreasNeed to work towards and enhancing quality of an integrated system of teacher educationLinking teacher education with institutions of research and higher educationContinued professional development of teachers and teacher educatorsEstablishing linkages between CRCs-BRCs-DIETs-SCERTs-Universities/Apex AgenciesICT in EducationInformation and Communication Technologies (ICTs) can be used in schools for a variety of purposes to improve the effectiveness of the classroomtransaction. The technologies that can be used include computers for computer-aided instruction and computer-aided learning, satellite based programmes on television, radio programmes, etc. Several attempts have been made in the past 5 years to evolve an ICT strategy for government schools, both by the Ministry of HRD and the Department of Information Technology (DIT). However, a concrete strategy for a phased coverage of schools has not yet been finalised. The latest effort is report of the Committee on Technology in Education (with representation from MHRD and DIT) finalised in 2005. This Committee made the following recommendation – out of total no. of 10,00,000 schools in the country, the programme ‘Technology in Education’ will cover 6,42,600 schools, which include 4,22,400 primary schools, 1,61,700 upper primary schools and 58,500 secondary schools. Every school will have server, five PCs, printer, Internet connectivity of 256 kbps plus other consumables, etc. The total cost for implementation of ‘Technology in Education’ in 6,42,600 schools is estimated to be 2,7631.8 crores. The entire programme is to be implemented in 3 years starting from 2006. Under SSA the focus has been on implementation of computer-aided learning (CAL) at the upper primary stage. About 10,000 schools in the country have implemented this strategy by providing 4-6 computers in an upper primary school. Various models of procurement of hardware and maintenance as well as development of multimedia content have been used by different States and UTs. Corporate foundations and several private sector organisations have been actively involved in this work. In a few States, like Jharkhand, Chattisgarh, Karnataka, Maharashtra and Uttaranchal, programmes for interactive radio instruction (IRI) are being implemented with the support from some resource organisations.However there is still not adequate clarity about the objective for introduction of ICTs in schools and appropriate strategies for thispurpose. Existing provisions for CAL are restrictive. Most States are not in a position to expand the coverage of schools, since this activity is presently funded only under the innovation component that provides INR 15 lakhs each year, per district. The followingare the recommendations for this component: (a) Several technologies or applications of technologies should be encouraged. These include:Computer Aided Learning (CAL): The children (group of 4) interact with the multimedia content and teachers act as facilitator.Computer Aided Instruction (CAI): The teacher centric instructional content is displayed by using large screen TV. Instead of regular CRT monitor, the CPU can be connected with TV with the help of Video Tuner card.Satellite based education: The satellite receiving terminal, digital receiver and set top box could be placed at Audio visual classrooms. The TV used for CAI can be used for this program as well by plugging the satellite signal.Radio Programs: Radio programmes are being used in some States for literacy, orienting teachers and even for students, during or after school. IRI is being implemented in a few States.Such a diversified use of technologies is more appropriate than using only computers.(b) There is an urgent need for national and State level policies on the use of technologies in education. Such policies should address aspects like – educational objectives for introducing ICTs; nature of technologies, equipment; procedures for procurement and maintenance; phasing of implementation in schools; setting of standards for content; evaluation/cost – benefit analysis etc. Such policies should form the basis for an expansion of the use of ICTs in schools.(c) ICTs are most effective at the secondary and upper primary stages. Therefore only upper primary schools need to be included in the initial stage.(d) ICTs could be used effectively for training and capacity building of teachers, resource persons at cluster and block and DIET personnel. Once ICTs are available at school level, they can be easily used for the purpose of transfer of information for MIS.(e) Internet connectivity needs to be considered vis-à-vis the costs and the likely educational benefits.(f) The programme for introduction of ICTs should not neglect the aspect of maintenance of equipment and the payment of recurring costs of electricity, consumables and internet connectivity.(g) In all cases, cost-sharing and revenue earning models should be factored in while planning for use of ICTs in schools.It is recommended that ICTs in education should not be included under the district level innovation component, but should become a part of the State level plan. Allocations should be approved for this component only if a State/UT has developed a clear ‘technologies in education’ policy that has articulated the aspects mentioned in (b) above.The implementation of this component should cover the dimensions of appropriate identification of schools, infrastructure and equipment, teacher training, appropriate software and multimedia content that is informed by an approach to the teaching learning process, utilisation of the infrastructure for adult literacy and training of youth, research and evaluation component.It is important to develop standards, and if necessary, a clearing-house mechanism to review the content developed for use of ICTs. At present there is a wide variability as well as duplication of efforts across the country for content development.An allocation of INR 5,000 cr. may be provided for the 11th Plan period at the initial stage for supporting programmes for use of technologies in education. Decisions on state-wise allocations could be taken by an empowered resource group or task force at the national level based on appraisal of policies and implementation plans prepared by States and UTs. Statesand UTs would also need to constitute task forces or resource groups tofinalise their strategies for this component. While this allocation may not be adequate to achieve coverage of all schools, it is more than 50 times the current annual allocations under SSA.Secondary EducationThere were 1,01,777 high schools and 50,272 higher secondary schools/institutions in the country as on 30 September 2004. Out of this 41.05 % belong to government and local bodies, 29.35 % are private schools receiver government aid and 29.60 % are private unaided. There are 41 examination boards out of which only two are of All India character i.e. Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) and Council for the Indian School Certificate Examination (CISCE) with 8,300 (approx.) and 1,500 (approx) number of schools affiliated tothem respectively.The VisionTo move towards Universalisation of Secondary Education: the target during the 11th Five Year Plan is to provide a secondary school within 5 kilometers of any habitation and to provide a higher secondary school within a distance of 7-8 kilometers of any habitation. This will be part of the vision to ensure universal secondary education by 2017, i.e. the end of the 12th Five Year Plan, whereas the target for GER by the end of the 11th Plan could be fixed at 75% for secondary stage.To ensure 100% enrolment and retention up to Higher Secondary stage by 2020: Secondary education should be universal but not compulsory. The State has to take up the responsibility for providing access to secondary education. Not only universal enrolment, but universal retention and satisfactory quality of learning should also be a priority.StrategiesThere is a need for paradigms sift in the conceptual design of secondary education, the guiding principles in this regard are universal access, equality and social justice, relevance and development, and curricular and structural aspects.ICT @ Schools: The main objective of the scheme is to establish an enablingenvironment to promote the usage of ICT, especially, in Secondary and Higher Secondary Government and Government–aided schools in the rural areas. The present scheme has essentially four components. The first one is the partnership with the State governments and union territories for providing computer education and computer-aided education to Secondary & Higher Secondary Government and Government aided Schools. The second is the establishment of SMART schools, which shall be the technology demonstrators. Universalisation of Computer Literacy through the networking of Kendriya Vidyalayas and Navodaya Vidyalayas with neighboring schools is the third component. The fourth component relates to the activities of State Institutes of Educational Training (SIETs) which are mandated to produce educational content in the form of films, videos, audios, etc. It is suggested that during the 11th Plan, the scope of the present scheme should be enlarged to target all the Government and Government-aided schools for providing ICT infrastructure. Further, special emphasis has to be given to incorporate teaching-learning methodologies for computer literacy.Universalisation of access and improvement of qualityIn the context of Universalisation of Secondary Education (USE), large scale inputs in terms of additional schools and teachers are to be provided to meet the challenge of numbers, credibility and quality. For assessment/provision of educational needs, physical infrastructure, human resource, academic inputs and effective monitoring of implementation of the programmes, following steps are required to be taken:Mapping of secondary schooling provisions (course mapping and curriculum)Assessment of enrolment and physical infrastructureRequirement of schooling facilities and learning resourcesTraining of in-service teachersLearning Resources (ICT, Library, EDUSAT)Investment in this regard is requiredfor improving school libraries, laboratories and workshops to promote experimental culture while reducing the importance of external examinations. There is also need to have Computer–interfaced experiments and projects utilising database from public domain. In view of the above, a science laboratory and an art and crafts laboratory need to be set up in each secondary school.In conformity with the advocacy in the National Curriculum Framework(NCF- 2005) about curriculum enrichment for overall development of children rather than remaining textbook centric and ensuring that learning isshifted from rote memorisation, the secondary schools should beequipped with a Learning Resource Centre (LRC) with following inputs:Library and Separate Room:It is suggested that ICT Resource Room and Library of the school may be housed in one big room (minimum size- 10mx7.5m), or these may be housed in two adjacent rooms. Library shall be looked by a separate teacher.Provision for ICT Support: the tentative budget estimates for providing ICT facilities in all 1,81,520 schools is INR 24,160 Crore. The items of expenditure include: ICT infrastructure and maintenance, Librarian cum ICT coordinator’s salary, Infrastructure for pre- service teacher’s training, Training of ICT coordinators, In service teacher’s training in the use of ICT in the schools, Digital content procurement/development and distribution, Establishment of resources in schools by state governments, Establishment of resources in schools by KVS/NVS, Monitoring, evaluation, research. Innovation, etc.Such facilities can also be procured on BOOT basis through private sector which can provide maintenance and other support.Link with EDUSAT: EDUSAT can be used for conventional radio and TV Broadcast, interactive radio and television, exchange of data, video/teleconferencing and web-based education.Capacity BuildingOrientation of Secondary School Teachers: An Orientation Programmes for the Teachers teaching the Secondary Classes needs to planned and operationalised through NCERT.Orientation of Educational Planners and Administrators: To cover all the Headmasters of 1,81,520 schools during the eleventh plan, National University of Educational Planning and Administration (NUEPA) needs to collaborate with and make a network of institutions like IASEs, CTEs, University Departments of Education, Management Schools, Regional Institutes of Education, (NCERT), Indian Institutes of Management, etc.Public Private Partnership57.04% of high schools and 62.83% higher secondary schools are run by private sector. Out of these 28.52% of high schools and 31.79% higher secondary schools are classified as private unaided schools.Private sector can be encouraged to invest part of its profit towards philanthropic activities in the education sector by adopting Government schools for improvement of infrastructure and resources like, library, science lab., audio-visual and ICT infrastructure, art workshops, sports facilities, drinking water and toilet facilities, etcSeveral functions of the government school can be outsourced through private sector involvementFor example, entire computer education can be outsourced from private sector who can provide computer and computer teachers for a fee. Similarly transport arrangements for students particularly for girls can be outsourced.Private sector should also be involved in designing curriculum and in designing a testing and certification system so that the demand for appropriate skill by the industry can be metOpen schooling systemIt is necessary to design, create and establish alternative Educational provisions for some prospective learners who will not be able to take advantage of formal schooling during stipulated school hours. The open schooling programmes up to pre-degree level are being offered by the National institute of open schooling (nios) and 10 State open schools (soss). The States that have set up soss are West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh, Tamilnadu, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Haryana, Punjab, and Jammu and Kashmir. The open schools network when fully developed should be able to cater to at least 15% students in secondary education. the openschooling network needs to be expanded to ensure that every state providesopen schooling facility through its regional language.Higher EducationAn exciting time has come for higher education in the country. The 11th Five Year Plan document proposes an almost 10-fold increase in outlay for higher and technical education. The planners have set ambitious targets to attract 15% students passing out of class XII (from the current 10%) into higher education by 2012 and 22% by 2017.In the new Plan, there’s more of everything – 30 new central universities are to be set up, seven IITs and IIMs, 10 National Institute of Technology, five research institutes to be called Indian Institute of Science, Education and Research, 20 IIITs, two schools of architecture and 330 colleges in educationally backward districts.Infrastructure in existing universities and institutions is also in for major upgradation. Among the big beneficiaries of these special grants will be 17 yet-to-identified central universities which will get INR 3,298 crore. Besides, 39 engineering institutes will receive a whopping INR 6,749 crore, again for ramping up infrastructure. A good dose of funds has also been set aside for upgrading agriculture, management andmedical institutions. The document envisions wide-ranging reforms in the way higher education isimparted and much of the fund allocation has been tied up to the beneficiary institute carrying out structural changes.Analysis of the past Five YearPlans indicates that, there have been continuous efforts to strengthen the base by developing infrastructure, improving the quality throughseveral programs and schemes, introducing reforms in content and evaluation and encouraging generation of knowledge through research. The focus of fifth five-year plan was on infrastructure development, the sixth plan onwards the focus shifted to consolidation and quality improvement. The Seventh Plan laid emphasis on research and academic developments. It was from this plan onward that the development centers of excellence and area study programs got special attention. From the Eighth Plan onward, the need for differential funding was recognized. Under this plan, it was envisaged that the developing departments would be provided necessary funds to bring up their facilities and activities to an optimum level for their teaching and general research pregrammes. The Ninth Plan aimed at gearing the system of higher education to meet the challenges arising out of the major social, economic and technological changes. The focus of Tenth Plan was aimed at quality and relevance of higher education, research and development, management in financing and the use of the new information and communication technologies. The Tenth Plan provided the basis for higher education in the 21st century.Use of ict in Higher EducationDuring the 11th Plan period, it is proposed to spread the coverage of ICT to all the 360 Universities and 17,625 Colleges in a phased manner. The benefits yielded by the Programmes during 10th Five Year Plan would be continued and harvested for revitalising and empowering intellectual hubs (Universities and Colleges) of thesociety through network, e-Resources, online learning, access to globalresources, archiving of contents and e-Learning management techniques so that these reforms contribute immensely to enhance the access parameters ingeneral and in particular to various Social Groups, Minorities, Women, Backward and remote areas.In the first phase, it is proposed to cover 200 Universities and 5,000 Collegesacross the country for achieving the desired objectives by using Broadband,Wireless, DSL, Leased line/TDM/FTDMA VSAT/SCPC/DAMA/Radio Frequency link, for establishing connectivity depending upon the geographical location in phased manner: This will include the following provisions:Access to global resources including multimedia based educational content through networking of colleges and universities.Platform for collaboration among teachers and students using Communication Networks.Better access to e-Contents (e-Journals and e-books).Digitising of Indian intellectual Content (Ph.D. Theses/Dissertations)Development and Maintenance of Union Catalogue (Books, Serials, secondary serial, current holdings etc. and others non book materials for Universities and Colleges).Audio/Video conferencing system at Universities.Manpower Training.Total Estimated Expenditure : inr 1750 crAt nios level : inr 300 croreAt soss level : inr 1450 crore (29 soss)Open & Distance LearningEnrollment target– The ODL System, in the scenario of a growth rate of 20% in the student enrollment, is likely toaccount for about 30% of overall enrollment in higher education in thecountry. This will result in significant increase in the enrollment at the end ofthe 11th Plan, the ODL System should account for an enrollment of around 7million students.Development of New Programmes and Courses – A national qualityframework for such competency and skills would have to be a priority during the 11th Plan. The 11th Plan proposals for the ODL system require a special thrust on development of vocational programmes. As a policy measure, at least 10 % of credits being developed in each school should be devoted to vocational, employment oriented programmes targeted at enabling self-employment or increase in employability of people.Media Infrastructure-Gyan Darshan, Gyan Vani and EdusatDuring the 11th Plan, the efforts would be to develop complete audio visual curriculum based content on a course-to-course basis as well as on creating integrated media learning packages course-wise, which would be available both as CDs and as software on IGNOU’s e-Gyankosh, the national repository on open learning material and integrated with One Stop Portal Sakshat of MHRD for use nationwide.While one channel of Gyan Darshan (GD-I) was put on Direct-to-Home(DTH) access through the Doordarshan DTH platform, in the 11th Planthrust will be to provide the interactive curriculum based channel (GD-II)through the DTH platform so that a large number of learners are able tointeract through toll-free numbers directly from there own homes.Funds would also be required to develop large educational software in all regional languages for the 50 plus Gyan Vani Radio Stations that could be in existence during the 11th Plan.Over the next five years, anaugmentation of about 40 positions, including the teaching positions for theRegional Centres is proposed. 30 positions proposed for the headquartersinclude production, staff, transmission staff,staff for the Edusat relatedactivities and technical staff, at various levels.EdusatWhile an impressive setup of up to 131 Satellite Interactive Terminals (SITs)is in place, another fifty are being installed. It is proposed to enlarge thisnetwork to about 500 SITs to extend the access to the disadvantaged and those in marginalised areas. It has also been decided to mobilise 10 teaching ends in the Edusat Network in addition to the teaching hub at IGNOU Hqs.Current Quality Status of Universities in India (as in 2007)Total Number of University Level Institutions (367)Total Number of Universities under UGC Purview (317)Number of Universities actually funded by the UGC (164)Number of Universities accredited by the NAAC (128)Number of Universities accredited by the NAAC and scoring above 60% (128)Current Quality Status in Colleges of Higher Education in India(As on March 31, 2005)Total Number of Colleges 17,625Number of Colleges under UGC purview 14,000Number of Colleges recognised under Section 2(f) of UGC Act 5,589 (40%)Number of Colleges recognised under Section 12(B) of UGC Act 5,273 (38%)Number of Colleges actually funded by the UGC 4,870 (35%)Number of Colleges accredited by the NAAC 2,780 (20%)Number of Colleges accredited by the NAAC and scoring above 60% 2,506 (17.9)There’s no denying the fact that there always are and will be plans. It is hoped that this plan will factor in overlaps, intersections and converging agendas while minimising wastage without loosing out on quality education. There is also no denying the pace of change in a socio-cultural context, as well as in the technological context. Technology and the needs of society arechanging even as we plan, so to speak. While it is true that all plans arehope, this plan will have to think-on-its-feet, sustain itself and even evolve as the very scenario it is to operate within changes.The World Bank supports the GoI’s education strategy as expressed in the 11th Plan Document. It reflects a realisation that education and skills development are at the core of the country’s effort to generate inclusive growth, rather than just growth which benefits a few but eludes many. And it reflects GoI’s commitment to address human capital shortages as quickly as possible, with significant increases in funding to be made available to the states. If anything, the concern is the capacity of the States to absorb and make the best use of those funds.Based on my own limited view and experience in India, it would appear that the poor quality and limited capacity of the India educational system may already be holding India back, but this government’s commitment to address these issues must be recognised and congratulated. The 11th Plan calls for a four-fold increase in educational investment over the 10th Plan, with large allocations for all education levels.It is interesting to see that there is more focus on the higher education. The only thing I want to comment on the plan is there is no exquisite mention on rolling more faculties. Suddenly there is such a huge increase in the number of universities. And if you start forcing the faculties currently available for the purpose, that would not help much. And preparing the faculties would be a mammoth task. Training teachers would take at least 10 years. Rolling more faculties should be considered.As before the focus has been on outlays, not on outcomes, the 11th five year plan brings a larger picture in comparison to the previous plans, looking at the allocations to education as opposed to thinking about improving the delivery of education services.Today, the situation in India is not lack of finances, but lack of proper delivery of education tools, which is of more value for students. So the focus should be on the learning outcomes, which refers to the accountability to the system, and this should be seen through teacher absentees, community control over schools, decentralisation of curricula, text books, exams, and use of school vouchers as way to deliver quality education.ePals in eLearning Agreements with National Geographic, IntelePals Inc., an Internet learning community, and National Geographic Ventures, which creates and distributes digital content for the National Geographic Society, have announced a partnership that will enhance the ePals site with National Geographic content to create unique learning experiences for classrooms, students and families around the globe.As part of the agreement, National Geographic has made a strategic investment in ePals. A representative of National Geographic Ventures and ePals will join the boards of the other, and the organizations have entered into a multi-year alliance and content agreement. Designed to enhance the way the Internet is used to foster safe and effective multicultural learning exchanges across media platforms, the first focus is to thread high-quality digital content from National Geographic: Stories of Animals, Nature, and Culture throughout http://ePals.com to create unique learning experiences.Initial topic areas of focus for the new alliance include maps and geography, habitats, global warming, natural disasters, people and culture, great leaders, water and weather. In each area, classrooms and teachers will be able to choose among projects that emphasize collaboration, 21st-century skill building and the use of school-safe communication tools to seamlessly work with learners around the world or down the block.Users will be encouraged to get into the act by building and sharing their own projects for use broadly within the community. ePals will also enable users in teacher and student forums, blogs and other community areas to 'Explore More,' delivering quality information in highly contextual.After All, It Is Difficult To Teach A Teacher : Mamta Sharma, Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya (JN V) MungeshpurNavodaya Vidyalaya Samiti is an autonomous body that was set up to establish and manage fully residential co-educational schools (one in each district in the country) known as Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalayas (JNV). Education in JNVs is free for all enrolled students, including lodging, boarding, textbooks, uniforms, etc.One of the first to integrate technology, NVS has actual grassroots experience in the integration of technology in education. In 1999, NVS and Intel started a joint initiative launched by the Department of Education, Ministry of HRD, Government of India. Since then, Intel has three ongoing programmes running, the Intel Teach curriculum, the Intel Initiative for Research and Innovation in Science (IRIS) and the Intel Learn curriculum. Digital Learning spoke to Mamta Sharma, the Vice Principal of JNV, Mungeshpur, who talks above the Intel-NVS collaboration and the digital opportunities in the school.How do you view the changes in the integration of ICT in school education?Officers came, the entire vision changed, the priorities change. Every person has their own vision and mission. ICT, once meant just the procurement of computers, now changed to not just the presense of computers, but also how much you are able to use these computers – ‘usage’ model. NVS believes that ICT integration means how you can most effectively use computers, how to effectively utilise the resources that we have, and how to benefit the community around! NVS has changed the definition of ICT integration with changes in the overall scenario. Writing a speech or presentation is not an end. Delivering it is an end, reaching out to the needy ones is another end to which the presentation itself is justa ‘means.’We also have project-based learning, where we have moved out of the textbooks, towards inquiry and how to search for solutions to a problem, making connections to real life. Real life connections would really mean, design activities in such a manner that meet the learning needs of the students, connect to the world outside of the classroom, and include meaningful tasks or projects that inHow do you integrate the given curriculum with ICT?The steps to integrate technology into the curriculum starts right from the day our teachers get training on professional development curriculum of Intel. They learn to use technology into their curriculum, practice student-centric approaches. These teachers then train other colleagues on the same curriculum. The teachers then plan multi-disciplinary lesson plans that not only promote judicious use of teachnology but also engae students into meaningful and authentic real life activities.How the scope of ICT in education changed?Earlier the teachers who would go for training on ICT integration were usually Maths or Science teachers. Now the perspective has become larger with Art teachers and Language teachers. So there is a lot of scaling-up that has happened since. I’ll give you an example, earlier when it came to teaching the science curricula, topics such as ‘the universe’ and ‘pollution’ were always there. Today, there are more sensitive issues that have been included. ‘Women empowerment’ using examples of women in different careers, etc, was a nice project that was done earlier. So teachers are also looking beyond the textbook.How do you evaluate teacher training?We don’t really evaluate teachers, but it is the programme that is evaluated in terms of how far we have reached? The issues faced by teachers are usually similar, just their proficiency levels in terms of ICT varies and they usually need brushing up of their technical skills. Regarding pedagogy, most teachers are good in NVS and now thankfully, most of them are also on par with technology. The training has components to gauge teacher ability in a peer-based evaluative environment, called ‘Showcasing.’After Showcasing, teachers get time to revisit their projects and make changes and that is the necessary feedback in terms of evaluation. After all, it is difficult to teach a teacher. But we still have to evaluate the teachers, which we do through showcasing and areas of improvement are suggested. So there are two aspects to teachers’ training. Firstly, as a teacher, they plan the lesson involving project based learning and integrating technology judiciously. Secondly, as student, they make student samples that highlight the higher order thinking skills imbibed by students while doing projects.What is the community involvement of your school?The Intel Learn programme has a component called ‘Pacesetting’ of MHRD under which we provide opportunity to children of neighbouring schools that might not have computers or infrastructure. In addition to developing IT skills in the laerners, the Intel Learn Programme inculcates necessary skills for the 21st century like collaboration skills and problem solving abilities. The curriculum is especially designed to also develop presentation and communication skills, basic skills which repair students for the workplaces of tomorrow.These students come to the Vidyalaya for a 15-day programme as they learn a curriculum called Technology. Using a project based approach, the curriculum activities and projects, demonstrate to learners how technology can contribute to and help improve their communities and variety of jobs respectively.Learners not only develop new technology skills and learn about their communities and various professions, the develop critical thinking skills as they collaborate to collect information, analyse that information, and finally, present it to their fellow students, teachers and other special guest from or outside their schools.How is the ICT component built into the syllabus?About 20% of the CBSE syllabus has to be taught through ICT wherein they have to bring projects connecting to real-life scenarios, catering to problem-solving skills, developing critical thinking and how to take typical topics and explain those which are difficult to explain in class, such as photosynthesis (Biology), chemical-bonding (Chemistry), etc, these can be easily explained using computers. The students are also motivated by the audio-visual aspect of the lesson. The student can actually see things that would not be possible to be observed otherwise. Using a computer-made presentation, such abstract concepts can be easily taught.What other challenges did you face in integrating ICT?Like I mentioned earlier, 20% of the syllabus in all subjects and all classes has to be taught using ICT, except for third language. According to the demand from students and their teachers, I feel we need more periods.I also feel that we need to have computers in every classroom. Currently we do loose a little time when students move to the Smart classrooms or the computer room. We also need to increase our infrastructure in terms of addinLeaderWhat forms the compelling basis on which Hey Math! solutions are based on?Every child, irrespective of whether they go to school system in any part of the world, we feel that they should get quality education. It is a well known and accepted fact that there is a fundamental teacher shortage. Because of that there is a subjective discontentment amongst the students and every one on the teaching quality of the subject teachers.This concern comes from the parents as well and they try to supplement with tutorials. They, out of desperation, send their children to the tutors. Again, tutors are also less in number; there is a fundamental shortage in the whole system. There is also no more one to one tutoring, and the students end up going from one set to another set of class rooms and end up doing additional work. The desired solid foundation of a given subject is not built up. When the students go back to the school, they find themselves in great trouble, as the teaching method in the school is very different from the tutorial teaching set up.Through our Hey Math! curriculum, we want to provide students access to the best teaching methodology by collaborating with high performing Mathematics system. We try to tap on the experts on Maths across the world to contribute to our contents. We understand the effective ways of digitising those and making available for students.Could you tell us about the adoption rate of Hey Math! programme, who needs it, where does it goIndian Government focuses on higher and technical educationTo promote the education in the country, the Union Government of India has cleared that the government will focus on higher and technical education in its 11th plan. This is the first time, the economic survey has equally devoted its attention to primary, secondary and higher education sector by highlighting initiatives in these sectors, which will further expand in the course of the 11 th Plan.However, it is also surprising that the survey is silent on the manpower crisis in higher education. Promoting and expanding higher education without making teacher's job attractive can result in a big crisis. The government has also committed to provide good quality elementary education to all children in the age group of 6-14 years. In this regard, the achievement by Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan, Mid-Day Meal Scheme and Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalaya are noteworthy. According to the survey, SSA has already constructed 1.70 million schools, 7.13 additional classrooms, 1.72 million drinking water facilities, 2.18 toilets and free supply to 6.64 billion textbooks, while MDM provides free food to 9.7 billion children. In the 11th Plan, MDM will be extended to upper primary level that would result in inclusion of 1.7 billion additional children of classes VI to VIII. SSA is expecting to allocate more than INR 13000 billion and MDM will allocate approximately INR 10,000 billion. There are other two highlights; universalisation of secondary education and expansion of higher education institutes. The scheme – Universalisation of Access to Secondary Education (SUCCESS) envisages mandatory secondary education to children in the age group of 15-16 years by 2015 and universal retention by 2020. This includes work on eight new IITs, seven new IIMs, 10 new NITs, three Indian Institutes of Science Education and Research, 20 IIITs and two new SPAs. Then, there is the plan for 14 world class universities, 16 central universities and 370 new degree colleges.WorldUK University dropout steady at 22%An drive to reduce the number of university dropouts has had no effect, according to a report from a committee of MPs. The proportion of students who fail to complete their degree has remained at 22% for five years.Edward Leigh MP, chairman of the committee, said, “Five years from our last report on student retention the percentage of students dropping out has not budged from 22%. This is despite some £800m being paid to universities over the same period to help retain students most likely to withdraw from courses early.”Poorer students, older students, disabled students and those with families – non-traditional students the government is keen to attract – are more likely to drop out. In 2005, St George’s hospital medical school, Oxford University, the Royal Veterinary College, Warwick and Bristol universities had below 3% drop out rates.‘For universities with consistently low retention rates the funding council’s regional teams should agree specific improvement plans,’ the committee’s report says, citing personal difficulties, dissatisfaction with courses and financial pressure as reasons why students drop out.A third of teachers ‘struggle with technology’: studyA third of teachers struggle to use the technology schools are equipped with and want more support and training, according to the National Foundation for Educational Research (NFER), U.K. NFER’s first Teacher Voice Omnibus Survey (TVOS), which was completed by about 1,000 teachers, including heads and newly qualified classroom teachers, shows widespread use of information technology in schools 80% said it had made a difference to the way they teach.But a ‘sizeable minority’ (33%) felt they lacked the necessary skills to exploit the technology available to them and needed more support and information to integrate information and communication technology (ICT) in lessons, NFER found.However, NFER said when compared to research conducted in 2004, the findings suggest that teacher competence in using ICT has improved overall. Two thirds (67%) said they had the ICT skills to exploit the technology available to them and 62% said ICT helps to raise pupil attainment. Teachers also said ICT leadership in schools could be improved. Just 27% of respondents felt that the leadership of ICT pedagogy in their school was inspirational and only 44% said that their school is innovative in its use of ICT.Czech science award for school studentsThe Czech company Ceska Hlava, in collaboration with the Czech Senate and the Czech Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports, has launched a competition for secondary school students. Entitled ‘Innovating Minds – Czech Awards for Young Europeans’, the natural sciences and technology competition is open to all European students up to 19 years of age.The prize will be awarded in five categories: information and communication technology (ICT), health and quality of life, environment, product and technology innovations and design and architecture. Applicants must submit their project synopsis online, including an independent expert’s review provided, for instance, by a science teacher. The applications for the Innovating Minds Award 2008 have to be submitted before 10 September. The award ceremony will then be held in October 2008 in Prague. An international jury will select the winners in each category. The jury is made up of scientists, politicians and experts from industry

The President of the United States discriminates against transgender people, and here’s some more:May 24, 2019: The Department of Health and Human Services published a proposed rule that would remove all recognition that federal law prohibits transgender patients from discrimination in health care. Courts across the nation have ruled otherwise.May 22, 2019: The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced a plan to gut regulations prohibiting discrimination against transgender people in HUD-funded homeless shelters.May 14, 2019: President Trump announced his opposition to the Equality Act (H.R. 5), the federal legislation that would confirm and strengthen civil rights protections for LGBTQ Americans and others.May 2, 2019: The Department of Health and Human Services published a final rule encouraging hospital officials, staff, and insurance companies to deny care to patients, including transgender patients, based on religious or moral beliefs. This vague and broad rule was immediately challenged in court.April 12, 2019: The Department of Defense put President Trump’s ban on transgender service members into effect, putting service members at risk of discharge if they come out or are found out to be transgender.March 13, 2019: The Department of Defense, giving an official implementation date of April 12.January 23, 2019: The Department of Health & Human Services' Office of Civil Rights granted an exemption to adoption and foster care agencies in South Carolina, allowing religiously-affiliated services to discriminate against current and aspiring LGBTQ caregivers.November 23, 2018: The U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) erased critical guidance that helped federal agency managers understand how to support transgender federal workers and respect their rights, replacing clear and specific guidance reflecting applicable law and regulations with vaguely worded guidance hostile to transgender workers. While this guidance change did not change the rights of transgender federal workers under applicable law, regulations, Executive Orders, and case law, it is likely to cause confusion and promote discrimination within the nation's largest employer.August 10, 2018: The Department of Labor released a new directive for Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) staff encouraging them to grant broad religious exemptions to federal contractors with religious-based objections to complying with nondiscrimination laws. It also deleted material from an OFCCP FAQ on LGBT nondiscrimination protections that previously clarified the limited scope of allowable religious exemptions.June 11, 2018: Attorney General Jeff Sessions ruled that the federal government would no longer recognize gang violence or domestic violence as grounds for asylum, adopting a legal interpretation that could lead to rejecting most LGBT asylum-seekers.May 11, 2018: The Bureau of Prisons in the Department of Justice adopted an illegal policy of almost entirely housing transgender people in federal prison facilities that match their sex assigned at birth, rolling back existing protections.March 23, 2018: The Trump Administration announced an implementation plan for its discriminatory ban on transgender military service members.February 18, 2018: The Department of Education announced it will summarily dismiss complaints from transgender students involving exclusion from school facilities and other claims based solely on gender identity discrimination.January 26, 2018: The Department of Health and Human Services proposed a rule that encourages medical providers to use religious grounds to deny treatment to transgender people, people who need reproductive care, and others.January 18, 2018: The Department of Health and Human Services' Office of Civil Rights opened a "Conscience and Religious Freedom Division" that will promote discrimination by health care providers who can cite religious or moral reasons for denying care.December 14, 2017: Staff at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention were instructed not to use the words “transgender,” “vulnerable,” “entitlement,” “diversity,” “fetus,” “evidence-based,” and “science-based” in official documents.October 6, 2017: The Justice Department released a sweeping "license to discriminate" allowing federal agencies, government contractors, government grantees, and even private businesses to engage in illegal discrimination, as long as they can cite religious reasons for doing so.October 5, 2017: The Justice Department released a memo instructing Department of Justice attorneys to take the legal position that federal law does not protect transgender workers from discrimination.September 7, 2017: The Justice Department filed a legal brief on behalf of the United States in the U.S. Supreme Court, arguing for a constitutional right for businesses to discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation and, implicitly, gender identity.August 25, 2017: President Trump released a memo directing Defense Department to move forward with developing a plan to discharge transgender military service members and to maintain a ban on recruitment.July 26, 2017: President Trump announced, via Twitter, that "the United States Government will not accept or allow Transgender individuals to serve in any capacity in the U.S. Military."July 26, 2017: The Justice Department filed a legal brief on behalf of the United States in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, arguing that the 1964 Civil Rights Act does not prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation or, implicitly, gender identity.June 14, 2017: The Department of Education withdrew its finding that an Ohio school district discriminated against a transgender girl. The Department gave no explanation for withdrawing the finding, which a federal judge upheld.May 2, 2017: The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced a plan to roll back regulations interpreting the Affordable Care Act’s nondiscrimination provisions to protect transgender people.April 14, 2017: The Justice Department abandoned its historic lawsuit challenging North Carolina’s anti-transgender law. It did so after North Carolina replaced HB2 with a different anti-transgender law known as “HB 2.0.”April 4, 2017: The Departments of Justice and Labor cancelled quarterly conference calls with LGBT organizations; on these calls, which had happened for years, government attorneys shared information on employment laws and cases.March 31, 2017: The Justice Department announced it would review (and likely seek to scale back) numerous civil rights settlement agreements with police departments. These settlements were put in places where police departments were determined to be engaging in discriminatory and abusive policing, including racial and other profiling. Many of these agreements include critical protections for LGBT people.March 2017: The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) removed links to four key resource documents from its website, which informed emergency shelters on best practices for serving transgender people facing homelessness and complying with HUD regulations.March 28, 2017: The Census Bureau retracted a proposal to collect demographic information on LGBT people in the 2020 Census.March 24, 2017: The Justice Department cancelled a long-planned National Institute of Corrections broadcast on “Transgender Persons in Custody: The Legal Landscape.”March 13, 2017: The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced that its national survey of older adults, and the services they need, would no longer collect information on LGBT participants. HHS initially falsely claimed in its Federal Register announcement that it was making “no changes” to the survey.March 13, 2017: The State Department announced the official U.S. delegation to the UN’s 61st annual Commission on the Status of Women conference would include two outspoken anti-LGBT organizations, including a representative of the Center for Family and Human Rights (C-FAM): an organization designated as a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center.March 10, 2017: The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced it would withdraw two important agency-proposed policies designed to protect LGBT people experiencing homelessness. One proposed policy would have required HUD-funded emergency shelters to put up a poster or "notice" to residents of their right to be free from anti-LGBT discrimination under HUD regulations.The other announced a survey to evaluate the impact of the LGBTQ Youth Homelessness Prevention Initiative, implemented by HUD and other agencies over the last three years. This multi-year project should be evaluated, and with this withdrawal, we may never learn what worked best in the project to help homeless LGBTQ youth.March 8, 2017: Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) removed demographic questions about LGBT people that Centers for Independent Living must fill out each year in their Annual Program Performance Report. This report helps HHS evaluate programs that serve people with disabilities.March 2, 2017: The Department of Justice abandoned its request for a preliminary injunction against North Carolina’s anti-transgender House Bill 2, which prevented North Carolina from enforcing HB 2. This was an early sign that the Administration was giving up defending trans people (later, on April 14, it withdrew the lawsuit completely).March 1, 2017: The Department of Justice took the highly unusual step of declining to appeal a nationwide preliminary court order temporarily halting enforcement of the Affordable Care Act’s nondiscrimination protections for transgender people. The injunction prevents HHS from taking any action to enforce transgender people's rights from health care discrimination.February 22, 2017, 2017: The Departments of Justice and Education withdrew landmark 2016 guidance explaining how schools must protect transgender students under the federal Title IX law.… and on, and on, and that’s just the T-Rump administration.- - - - - - - - - -Now, let’s talks about the murders of trans gender black women …black transgender women at risk hate crimes murderViolence Against the Transgender Community in 2019 | Human Rights ... https://www.hrc.org/resources/violence-against-the-transgender-community-in-2019 Filed under: Transgender, Transgender Children & Youth, Communities of Color, Hate Crimes ... In others, the victim's transgender status may have put them at risk in other ... Jazzaline Ware, a Black transgender woman, was found dead in her ... Few details are yet public about the crime, but police told a local news outlet ...Violence Against the Transgender Community in 2018 | Human Rights ... https://www.hrc.org/resources/violence-against-the-transgender-community-in-2018 In others, the victim's transgender status may have put them at risk in other ways, ... Viccky Gutierrez, 33, a transgender woman from Honduras was stabbed and ... Police have confirmed they are looking into the incident as a possible hate crime. .... Tydi Dansbury, 37, a Black transgender woman, was fatally shot in Baltimore ... ‎Violence Against the ... · ‎A National Epidemic: Fatal Anti ... · ‎Roxana HernándezThe murder of black transgender women is becoming a crisis - The ... https://www.washingtonpost.com/...murder...black-transgender-women.../28f8dba6-912... Jun 17, 2019 - The number of reported hate crimes has nearly doubled in ... “The murder of Black trans women is a crisis,” Sen. ... out a gun and threatened some of the transgender youths staying there, according to a D.C. police report.The Fatal Shooting of Muhlaysia Booker Is Part of a Larger Trend of ... https://psmag.com/.../fatal-shooting-of-muhlaysia-booker-trend-of-violence-against-bl... May 20, 2019 - Five black transgender women have been killed in the United States so far this year. ... as gender identity is not included within Texas' hate crime statute, ... at risk: They have made up the majority of transgender deaths by fatal ...Murders of Black Trans Women Reveal a Crisis, Advocates Say | Time https://time.com › U.S. › Texas Jun 6, 2019 - Two Recent Murders of Black Trans Women in Texas Reveal a .... Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Act. She says the exclusion of transgender people from ...Transgender Women of Color | Colorlines https://www.colorlines.com/tags/transgender-women-color Dallas Police Turn to FBI After Second Black Trans Woman Killed ... to look for evidence of hate crimesin the homicides of Chynal Lindsey and Muhlaysia Booker. ... Text: If in 2015 all Americans had the same risk of murder as young Black.Transgender hate crime statistics: 12th black woman murdered in 2019 https://www.usatoday.com/.../transgender-hate-crime...black-woman-murdered.../182... Jul 25, 2019 - The 12th known transgender person to violently die this year was found fatally shot in South Carolina.Chynal Lindsey: Why are black trans women being killed in Dallas ... https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-48525458 Jun 5, 2019 - Ms Lindsey was the second black trans woman in Dallas to be killed within the last ... truth - that trans women of colour in the US are disproportionately at risk of being killed. ... The Trans MurderMonitoring project says that in the decade ... to record attacks as hate crimes, for example, which can obscure the ...Not enough 'outrage' in wake of rampant anti-transgender murders ... https://abcnews.go.com/US/outrage-wake-rampant-anti-transgender-murders.../story?id... May 25, 2019 - Police are investigating to see if Booker's murder was a hate crime, or if it could ... 26 U.S. murders involving transgender victims, with black trans women ... In others, the victim's transgender status may have put them at risk in ...Police investigating possible hate crime in trans woman's ... - CBS News https://www.cbsnews.com/.../denali-berries-stuckey-south-carolina-police-investigate-... Jul 23, 2019 - Stuckey is also the third black transgender woman murdered since 2018 ... In a statement, the city of North Charleston said hate crimes "warrant ...… and on and on and on …- - - - - - - - - -In response to others:Prior comment:“… You spent all this money and all of this time and effort to warp your bodies into something more suitable for you, and prefer to be called by the gender you translate …”There is a serious confusion in the prior post betweenbeing trans* sex/genderand transitioning.Children get discriminated against assaulted, battered, murdered, and they have not “spent all this money” on any medical transition, yet they obviously get discriminated against, by our government and the current administration.And medical transition is a medical prescription, covered on medical insurance, as any other medical prescription is that is necessary to eliminate the suffering of the individual, so what is the point and purpose in denigrating people for “spending all this money”?!?It is estimated that only a minority of trans* sex/gender people pursue any form of medical transition, so the focus of the prior post is seriously off balance, and derogatory.Where do cis gender people get legally discriminated against for their $16,000,000,000 per year in the US alone for plastic surgery, including vagina rejuvenation, penis implants, boob jobs, and so on, in order to remake themselves to better fit their self-identification?Sixteen billion dollars a year in the US alone.And no discrimination.Not even any attitude in the prior post about cis gender people “spending all this money and all of this time and effort to warp your bodies into something more suitable”.But trans* sex/gender people?The prior post if full of spit and venom.Why?Seriously - why?- - - - - - - - - -Prior post:“… I’m not obligated to call anyone by their preferred pronouns, and neither is anyone else …”So an employer or co-worker calling a black man “… boy …” is acceptable to you as a fair and legal workplace environment, not discrimination, not hostile?- - - - - - - - - -Prior post:“… And when [ trans gender people ] are told they are biologically men (Which is true.), they tend it get pissy …”Help me understand what you believe about anyone’s biology makes anyone any sex/gender?Thanks.- - - - - - - - - -Prior post:“… [ transgender people are ] Not [ discriminated against ] to the degree they love to profess …”I would like to review evidence.Like from comparisons of … say …parents who kick trans gender children out of their homes to live and die on the street, just because they are trans gender,compared to parents who kick their cis gender children out to live and die on the street, just because they are cis gender.And other such explorations.Thanks.- - - - - - - - - -Ouch, lack-of education alert: “… become transgender …”.What are you thinking?Are you thinking “transition”?Is that what you meant?No one “… becomes transgender …” after birth, and certainly not by any volition.The sex/gender of our endocrine systems is fully developed naturally in the womb before birth.Children are trans* sex/gender.And trans* sex/gender children get discriminated against by their own parents, and their parents kick them out of their homes, under age, to live and die on the street.Read some articles on:homeless transgender children… before returning to the conversation:Housing & Homelessness | National Center for Transgender Equality https://transequality.org/issues/housing-homelessness Homelessness is also a critical issue for transgender people; one in five ... LGBT homeless youth; and the Administration for Children and Families issued the ...Homelessness among LGBT youth in the United States | MDedge ... https://www.mdedge.com/.../transgender.../homelessness-among-lgbt-youth-united-states Jan 18, 2019 - Additionally, about 4% of homeless youth identify as transgender, ... to utilize the important skills to accept and support their LGBT child.Trans, Teen, Homeless: America's Most Vulnerable Population ... https://www.rollingstone.com/.../trans-teen-and-homeless-americas-most-vulnerable-pop... Sep 26, 2017 - Trans, Teen and Homeless: America's Most Vulnerable Population .... On average, transgender kids are 13 years old when they first find ...National Coalition for the Homeless LGBT Homelessness - National ... https://nationalhomeless.org/issues/lgbt/ LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender) individuals face a particular set of challenges, both in becoming homeless as well as when they are trying to avoid ...Gay and Transgender Youth Homelessness by the Numbers - Center ... https://www.americanprogress.org/.../gay-and-transgender-youth-homelessness-by-the... Jun 21, 2010 - 44 percent: The portion of homeless gay and transgender youth who ... Child welfare systems often fail to protect gay and transgender youth.LGBTQ Youth Experiencing Homelessness – National Center for ... https://nche.ed.gov/lgbtq-youth/ All Our Children: Strategies to Prevent Homelessness, Strengthen Services and ... Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Questioning Runaway and Homeless Youth ...Working With Homeless LGBTQ Youth | Lambda Legal https://www.lambdalegal.org/know-your-rights/article/youth-homeless Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and questioning (LGBTQ) youth become homeless at rates that should alarm anyone working in the child welfare and ...Homeless rates for LGBT teens are alarming, but parents can make a ... https://www.washingtonpost.com/.../homeless-rates-for-lgbt-teens-are-alarming-heres-... Mar 29, 2017 - Up to 1.6 million young people experience homelessness in ... What stuck with me most wasn't the fact that he had a transgender child, but the ...LGBTQ Youth Disproportionately Experience Homelessness | Human ... https://www.hrc.org/.../new-report-on-youth-homeless-affirms-that-lgbtq-youth-dispr... Nov 15, 2017 - A new report on youth homelessness found that LGBTQ young adults had a ... Filed under: Children & Youth, Transgender Children & Youth, ...… and so on.Please educe yourself on the topic of discrimination against trans* sex/gender people. especially children, and about the majority of trans* sex/gender people who have not medically transitioned.Thank you.- - - - - - - - - -Prior post:“… Those two things [ an employer or co-worker intentionally referring to an employee or co-worker by the wrong gender, and a white employer or co-worker calling a black man employee or co-worker “… boy …” ] aren’t even remotely equivalent …”… because?It’s called creating a hostile environment, illegal discrimination, been illegal in the US for 50+ years, nothing new, and it costs plenty, employees and co-workers who behave that way can get serious administrative fines, and if brought to court, they can get jail time if repeated, especially against a judge’s court order.But the prior post seems written by someone who really thinks that trans* sex/gender people do not get discriminated against.Help me understand what informative references there are for whatever one thinks is equal treatment under law.Thanks.- - - - - - - - - -Prior post:“… you are talking about pre-op trans kids …”No.The majority of trans* sex/gender people seek no medical transition, no medical “op” operation whatsoever.They are not “pre op”, they are “no op”.I seriously doubt that the author of the line:“… you are talking about pre-op trans kids …”… has any understanding of trans* sex/gender people.I’ll provide a quick overview, but there are libraries, and an Internet, full of references to help people educe themselves on this subject.Keep reading, there are reference links below.- - - - - - - - - -Trans* sex/gender could mean many things, so far we’ve witnessed:ambiguous genetics, and genetics opposite the person’s sex/gender,ambiguous gonads, people with both an ovary and a testes, and so on,ambiguous genitals, people with both vagina and penis, and so on,ambiguous hormones and receptivity/resistance, especially XY women who naturally get pregnant and give birth unassisted, see ambiguous genetics,ambiguous endocrine systems, brain sex/gender versus body sex/gender, see ambiguous hormones.If we pay attention long enough, we’ll probably witness and experience every possibility beyond our imaginations.- - - - - - - - - -Let’s all teach ourselves what the phrase “trans* sex/gender” means to those who self-identify using those terms.Again and again, I will repeat this and expand this until this is old news that everyone knows well and understands implicitly and teaches to their children.For those willing to learn what being ANY sex/gender is, and for those unaware of, or with presumptions of what being trans* sex/gender is all about, here’s a summary, please note how many “SAME” definitions there are for cis sex/gender and trans* sex/gender people alike, and please watch and read autobiography videos, movies, posts, blogs, and books for more:In the womb before birth, our various endocrine subsystems develop their sex/gender under hormone presence, receptivity, and resistance, and where our brain, and our gonads / genitals, which develop at different times, may develop different sex/gender from each other, all naturally, all in the womb, all before birth.Birth-certificate-witness-doctors can only see our genitals, and they diagnose, assign, and register our sex/gender for us accordingly.However, we all self-identify our own sex/gender around 3-years-old according to our own growing self-awareness of the sex/gender of our own brain ( we need no review of our birth certificate assignment, no understanding of future reproductive sexual correlates, no DNA test, no Bible, no liberal indoctrination, no peer pressure ).And, if our brain is a different sex/gender than our genitals, then some of us change our sex/gender assignment through new legal registration with our federal, state, and local self-governance — and that's the same and equal for all of us, the same for cis sex/gender people, and the same for trans* sex/gender people alike.* A transition process, if any, is personally variable, and may or may not include any of the following, some of which have absolutely no impact or effect on the sex/gender of one’s body, including the ability to eventually procreate ( to parent our own child ):Presenting as one’s own self-identified the sex/gender - hair, shoes, clothes, makeup, and so on,Changing one’s name,Registering one’s own self-identified sex/gender with any territorial self-governance ( no surgery necessary in the US ),Participating in sex/gender-specific activities as one’s own self-identified sex/gender,Hormones ( now we enter the realm of possible interference with reproduction ),Surgery, including:top ( secondary sex/gender endocrine subsystems ),bottom ( primary sex/gender endocrine subsystems ),face and voice ( safety, as well as self-identity, especially for trans* sex/gender females ).We can all search the web and our local libraries and educate ourselves with something new and so important to understand, try these keywords:in womb brain sex/gender development for reports of 20+ years settled and continuously evolving science, biology, medicine, endocrinology, psychiatry, and law, the same for cis sex/gender people and trans* sex/gender people alike.age of trans* sex/gender self awareness for self-testimony on self-identification, legally equal, the same for cis sex/gender people and trans* sex/gender people alike.Spack trans* sex/gender thrive for the applied life-saving endocrinology support for people worthy of equal happiness, equal participation, equal success in our society, in their own society.register sex/gender SSA and sex/gender visa passport to see how to register our own self-identified sex/gender with our Social Security Administration at the federal, state, and local level, and secure national and international visa and passports that accurately present our own self-identified sex/gender identification, again, same for cis sex/gender people and trans* sex/gender people alike.trans* sex/gender 101 and trans* sex/gender stories books autobiographies for expansive exploration of real people’s experience, testimony, and references, and to connect us with the wonderful and challenging worlds of people who have incredible and inspirational stories to share.And let's all watch and listen to trans* sex/gender people's own stories on TED and YouTube.… and PLEASE let's all grow some informed empathy.And our own confusion about trans* sex/gender people will be relieved as quickly as we learn new things.Look stuff up with me — let's all enjoy learning.And never forget to treat others with the dignity and respect that they would like, equivalent to what we would like for ourselves.These are life lessons for ourselves, and for our parents and grandparents, for our siblings, children, friends, neighbors, folks we work with, and so on.No more second class citizens, ever, please — thank you.- - - - - - - - - -Apparently endless reiteration needed:Prior post:“… intersex is not a new gender, they are still male or female …”Trans* sex/gender - including “intersex” - could mean many things, so far we’ve witnessed:ambiguous genetics, and genetics opposite the person’s sex/gender - Question: is an person with XXY, XYX, XYY or other variations female or male? Answer: they will self-identify, because cell genetics do not determine nor develop a person’s sex/gender.ambiguous gonads, people with both an ovary and a testes, and so on - Question: is an person with an ovary and a testicle, or other variations female or male? Answer: they will self-identify, because gonads do not determine nor develop a person’s sex/gender.ambiguous genitals, people with both vagina and penis, and so on - Question: is an person with a vagina and a penis female or male? Answer: they will self-identify, because genitals do not determine nor develop a person’s sex/gender.ambiguous hormones and receptivity/resistance, especially XY women who naturally get pregnant and give birth unassisted, see ambiguous genetics - Question: is an person with androgens and estrogens female or male? Answer: they will self-identify, because hormones do not determine a person’s sex/gender.ambiguous endocrine systems, brain sex/gender versus body sex/gender, see ambiguous hormones - Question: is an person with a brain of one sex/gender and a body of an other sex/gender female or male? Answer: they will self-identify, because other-identification does not determine nor develop a person’s sex/gender.If we pay attention long enough, we’ll probably witness and experience every possibility beyond our imaginations.- - - - - - - - - -Yup, endless:Prior post:“… trans implies that you HAVE to translate to other sex. If you haven’t, that is not trans. That’s like saying you’re an engineer without getting the certifications and the job. It’s doesn’t take the constant mental gymnastics you’re using to understand that …”Fist, “… translate …” probably means “… transition …” - I’ve never read anyone referring to “… translate …” regarding anything in the subject of this thread.Second, there is definitely severe confusion in the prior post, unable to distinguish between:being trans* sex/gender, just being,and the act of transitioning anything about one’s self.They are entirely different subjects.And there are trans* sex/gender people who believe that they are no longer trans* sex/gender after they have transitioned, because they no longer have anything about themselves that is “trans/across” the human sex/gender spectrum from female-to-male - they are either female, or they are male, not “trans/across” anymore.Because:the word “trans” simple means “across”, in this case, “across” the human sex/gender spectrum from female-to-male, that is, a person with both female and male elements to their being.“transition” regarding trans* sex/gender people relates to changing something, such as their name, their hair, their clothing, their participation in sex/gender-differentiated activities, goods, services, and opportunities - not all trans* sex/gender people change anything, and it is estimated that only a minority of trans* sex/ gender people change anything medically.I’m guessing that the prior post does not incorporate any understanding that trans* sex/gender people really are the sex/gender they self-identify as regardless if they have transitioned anything - they are that way developed in the womb before birth, and are that way as babies, as children, as pre-teens, as teems, young adults, adults, and so on - and up until ~20 years ago, no one ever had full support for medical transition because there was scant little understanding in the medical support communities of what was going on.That is, trans* sex/gender people self-identify their sex/gender according to their own self-awareness and experience of the sex/gender of their own brain ( no transition necessary, not even possible years ago ).Trans* sex/gender people’s brain, and by extension, they themselves, are that sex/gender - the sex/gender of their brain, not their genitals.They may have any combination of genetics, gonads, genitals, hormones, endocrine systems, and so on, that match or do not match the same sex/gender of their brain and their self-identified sex/gender.Hence, they are “trans” - “across” sex/gender, that is, “across” the sex/gender spectrum from female-to-male, all in one person.I cannot even imagine.It boggles my mind.- - - - - - - - - -And then, some transition ( non-medically ) - name, clothing, hair, presentation, participation - I could never have expressed myself as different from other’s expectations, that must be an incredible challenge, they must have parents way more loving and self-educating and accepting than any parents I’ve ever met, especially my own parents.And then, some transition their bodies, medically, with puberty blockers, hormones, and even operations to make themselves more appropriate for their own self-identification - again, beyond my imagination, the bravery, hope, and support must be incredible - I look at my own parents, and they didn't even accept me wearing blue-jeans with holes in them, or having uncropped hair, I can’t imagine trying to talk with them about who I am, especially if that didn’t match who they expected me to be, I couldn’t even challenge “… what, you don’t want to go to the school we picked out for you?!? …” - geesh!- - - - - - - - - -So, no, just being trans* sex/gender is unrelated to any medical act of transitioning any part of one’s own body.There’s is so much to understand and appreciate about our sex/gender, please, let’s all educe ourselves with references form local libraries and the Internet, and overcome our simple uninformed resumptions.Thanks.- - - - - - - - - -Yup, endless … but someone’s gotta do this:Prior post:“… Eh, [ discrimination, harassment, and a hostile environment ] depends on the context and tone. Honestly, aside from being mildly annoying and a little rude, that’s hardly anything to get any over. Unless there was a really harsh tone, then maybe. But again, context is everything ...”Yes, and it’s illegal, and has been for 50+ years.You may not consider such harassment and hostility worth paying attention to, but it interferes with one’s ability to get a job, do one’s job, get equal opportunities for promotion, raises, and so on, and such “otherizing” and ostracizing leads to assault and battery and murder.And it happens in health care, police services, housing, education, public services, shopping, dining, going to a public toilet, completely overwhelms school experiences, and so on.We instituted our government to secure our rights, our rights to life, liberty, and our own pursuit of our own happiness, without discrimination in government and public accommodations, all equal under equal law.Why would anyone think that someone else’s happiness ought to be less important to them than our own is to us?- - - - - - - - - -The opening topic:Are transgender people even discriminated against?The prior post:“… Not to the degree they love to profess …”Civil rights law for 50+ years:it’s illegal at any degree.I imagine that the author of the prior post has a gifted life in being part of a majority and well-accepted and supported experience of themselves, and thus is separate from and unable to imagine the damages done by discrimination at every part of one’s life, from parents, to fellow school children and school teachers and administrators, to church, to presentations on television and in books and magazines, to strangers in society and in the marketplace, all scrutinizing and rejecting and saying“… you are not who you say you are,you are who I say you are …”.I hope I have opened the opportunity for everyone reading here to imagine beyond themselves, and follow the links in my sharing in this thread and elsewhere n Quora and on the web.Thanks for sharing.- - - - - - - - - -More, OMG:Prior post:“… Getting someone’s gender wrong isn’t exactly “hostile”. If you want to be called otherwise, but put the opposite gender on your application, then expect to be called such. Also, refusing to call someone made up terms like Zi Zer, and other nonsense like that isn’t somehow discriminatory anymore than me wanting to be called devon when my name is not …”Actually, if someone wants to be called “Devon” when their legally registered name is not “Devon” is perfectly acceptable, and anyone wilfully against your request to not call that person “Devon” would be considered illegal harassment, creation of an illegal hostile environment.Regardless of one’s own personal imaginings about the subject, there is a lot of law to be explored at:hostile environment and harassmentHarassment - EEOC https://www.eeoc.gov/laws/types/harassment.cfm They should clearly communicate to employees that unwelcome harassing conduct ... If the supervisor's harassment results in a hostile work environment, the ... ‎Sexual Harassment · ‎Harassment · ‎Checklists and Chart of Risk ...How to Handle a Hostile Work Environment - The Balance Careers https://www.thebalancecareers.com › Finding a Job › Job Searching › Basics › Glossary A hostile work environment is created when anyone in a workplace commits this type of harassment, including a co-worker, a supervisor or manager, ...Hostile work environment - Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hostile_work_environment In United States labor law, a hostile work environment exists when one's behavior within a workplace creates an environment that is difficult or uncomfortable for another person to work in, due to discrimination. Common complaints in sexual harassment lawsuits include fondling, ...Sexual Harassment in the Workplace: Quid Pro Quo Versus Hostile ... https://hrdailyadvisor.blr.com/.../sexual-harassment-in-the-workplace-quid-pro-quo-v... Sexual Harassment in the Workplace: Quid Pro Quo Versus Hostile Work Environment. By Bridget Miller Sep 3, 2014 HR Management & Compliance. Sexual ...What is Hostile Environment Harassment? HR Definitions & Examples https://www.mightyrecruiter.com/recruiter-guide/.../hostile-environment-harassment/ Hostile Environment Harassment. Hostile environment harassment occurs when an employee faces discrimination or harassment that is so severe and widespread that it prevents him or her from properly performing the job. ... Preventing hostile environment harassment is an important part of human resource management.Hostile Environment Sexual Harassment: Everything to - Know https://www.upcounsel.com/hostile-environment-sexual-harassment Building upon that definition, hostile environment sexual harassment is one type of harassment that creates an abusive work environment that impedes workers ...How do I know if I'm in a hostile work environment? | Gilbert ... www.gelawyer.com/blog/.../how-do-i-know-if-im-in-a-hostile-work-environment.sht... Dec 1, 2017 - Technically, a hostile work environment is a workplace in which the ... Consider these examples of hostile work environment harassment:.Hostile Environment Harassment: Definition & Law | Study.com https://study.com/academy/.../hostile-environment-harassment-definition-law-quiz.htm... Hostile work environment harassment is one of two types of sexual harassment. Learn more about a hostile work environment and its legal...The Complete Guide to a Hostile Work Environment in 2019 - i-Sight https://i-sight.com/resources/the-complete-guide-to-a-hostile-work-environment/ Jan 30, 2019 - A hostile work environment can look like many things. ... of unwelcome behavior with this 11 Types of Workplace Harassment Cheat Sheet.… and so on - great reading, lots of opportunities to educe ourwelves and gains some insight on other people’s experiences and the law that seeks to include and protect us all equally.- - - - - - - - - -Yes, there’s more:Prior post:“… Genetics is biology. I have no idea what weird planet you’re on where that’s not the case. … Also, there’s nothing to add. XX female, XY male. No amount of surgery changes that, biologically …”Biology and cell genetics are different disciplines and do not have much correspondence to each other, and neither has any correspondence on the law.XY female and XX males confirm that cell genetics is not determinant of anyone’s sex/gender.Plus, there is no place for cell genetics to participate in legally registering one’s sex/gender.And cell genetics are not known by anyone, certainly not before there was even an understanding of cell genetics, and any cell genetics test cannot be compelled, is totally optional, being a medical procedure, second opinions abound, the results are legally private, and cannot be legally discovered by anyone else without permission, and government and public accommodations cannot use cell genetic information to discriminate by.Cell genetics is interesting but off topic.If cell genetics was the “biologically” support for:“… And when [ trans gender people ] are told they are biologically men (Which is true.), they tend it get pissy …”… then, no, no one can tell anyone their cell genetic information, and cell genetic information does not identify anyone’s sex/gender.There is no possible truth to that statement in the prior post.If there is nothing more to substantiate that prior posts’s statement, then that prior post’s statement falls as unsubstantiated,More, or no more?Thanks.- - - - - - - - - -Question added by Anonymous Quora Sock Puppet “… Are transgender people even discriminated against? (Are transgender people even discriminated against?) …” #386040962 · Thank · Report · 12 Mar 2018 12:47 PM.