Gender-fair language aims to include all people. In Bavaria it is now banned in state institutions such as schools. A regulation that causes criticism.
District - When you look at all the crises of our time, you would think that the Free State would have more pressing problems to address than bothering with asterisks, underscores or other special characters in words. Markus Söder obviously sees it differently. The Bavarian Prime Minister fears that gender-appropriate language will divide society, as he said in December during a school visit in Munich. He made the special characters a political issue - and declared war on them. A gender ban has been in effect at Bavarian authorities, schools and universities since April.
A letter from the Ministry of Culture officially informed state institutions about the new spelling rules. Bernhard O'Connor, headmaster of the Welfen-Gymnasium in Schongau, also received a letter like this on his desk. “We are informed that there is a gender ban and that we should stick to it,” he said in an interview with our newspaper.
Gender ban in Bavaria meets with criticism – “It excludes a lot of people”
As the headmaster explains, the ban is primarily about the fact that gender-appropriate language is not used in texts that the school publishes to the outside world. O'Connor cites annual reports and letters to parents as examples, as well as the school's own articles on the homepage. “The gender ban must be observed everywhere.”
As a school principal, he himself is the controlling authority who has to check that the texts are formulated accordingly. “When teachers write letters, for example, I look over them again,” says O'Connor, explaining the practical approach. The same applies to the content on the website.
But not only the teaching staff and the school management, but also the students are directly affected by the gender ban. In essays and seminar papers, you are no longer allowed to use special characters that also include non-binary people. The pure male and female forms – such as “pupils” – are still permitted.
Student fears: Gender ban excludes non-binary people
A regulation that student Maria Meyer from Weilheim does not agree with. The 15-year-old, who is in the 9th grade of high school in Weilheim, has dealt intensively with the topic and has been consistently changing with asterisks for four years. Using only the male and female forms is not an option for her personally. “Unfortunately, that excludes a lot of people.”
Overall, the student is of the opinion that the gender ban completely misses the goal she has set herself. “The Bavarian government argues that the regulation is intended to ensure more understanding and fairness,” says the ninth-grader. “However, the gender ban is a major restriction for our teachers who have previously taught gender.” And “the new regulation also leads to more confusion and unfair treatment for us students,” says Meyer. “Non-binary people are not addressed at all and do not feel welcome or seen.”
Criticism from the parents’ advisory board – “Bans in this direction are not good”
After all, if you continue to make changes in your schoolwork, you don't have to worry about being graded lower. “If students do not adhere to the gender ban in their own essays or forget it, the teachers mark it out,” says principal O'Connor. However, this is not included in the assessment.
By the way: Everything from the region is also available in our regular Schongau newsletter. And in our Weilheim-Penzberg newsletter.
Critical voices about the gender ban also come from parents. For example, Sibylle Rollinger, who represents the Weilheim-Schongau district's joint parents' council, doesn't like the new regulation. She emphasizes that although all opinions on the topic are represented among parents, she personally thinks that “bans in this direction are not good”. “Language is something very, very important,” says the educational mediator. It is important to use language to address everyone, to approach each other and to listen to one another. “In recent years we have been too rough with our language.”